VBJ February 19

VOLUME 30, NUMBER 2 

And... 

5 Ways to Burn Calories on 

Your Lunch Break 

The Importance of Vision in 

Children’s School Success 

Soft Opening for 

Oak Grove Center’s 

Culinary Creations 

Storefront in Old 

Town 

page 27 

FEBRUARY 2019 

Inland Valley 

Medical Center 

Receives Verification 

as a Level II 

Trauma Center 

page 23 

Taste & Enjoy 

from the Four Corners of 

the World 

SEE PAGE 29 

Supervisor Kevin Jeffries 

Elected Chairman 

New Board Members Sworn in 

at First Riverside County Board 

Meeting of 2019 

SEE PAGE 27 

by State Senator Jeff Stone 

Capitol 

Notes 

The elections are over, 

the Holidays have come 

and gone and the California 

Legislature is gearing up for 

a busy new year. 

There are many needs facing 

our great state, and among 

those needs is how we can 

best provide access to quality 

healthcare to the millions of 

people who too often turn to 

emergency rooms for their 

medical services. 

SEE PAGE 27 

SEE PAGE 27 

Temecula Valley named a 

‘10 Best Wine Travel 

Destination’ 

by Wine Enthusiast 

SEE PAGE 26 

What Makes a Window 

Energy Efficient? 

COMMUNITY 11 

Visit Temecula Valley 

Announces New 2019 

Leadership 

19 

COMMUNITY 

Cloudy and Blurry, or 

the New Normal? 

REAL ESTATE 

25

www.TheValleyBusinessJournal.com 

THE VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL 

2 February 2019

February 2019 



3 

In this issue 

Rotary Taste of the World 1 

Supervisor Kevin Jeffries Elected Chairman 1 

Capitol Notes 1 

Temecula Valley Named a ‘10 Best Travel Destination’ 1 

Community 4-11 

Fault and Liability for Motor Vehicle Accidents 7 

Non-Medical Home Care Helps Adults Achieve Quality of Life 9 

Helping Adults with Autism Find Employment 10 

What Makes a Window Energy Efficient? 12 

How Will Tax Reform Impact YourDeductions This Tax Season? 12 

EXECUTIVE PROFILE | Monique deGroot13 

Guide to 2018 Tax Law Changes and More 14 

What is the Difference Between Estate Planning & Financial Planning? 18 

Envisioning our Future Together 18 

Azusa Pacific University Hosts Preview Night & Financial Aid Workshop 19 

Pneumonia 19 

The Importance of Vision in Children’s School Success 20 

5 Ways to Burn Calories on Your Lunch Break 21 

Romance 101: Self-Love 22 

Women’s Health Expo 22 

Inland Valley Medical Center Receives 

Verification as a Level II Trauma Center 23 

Keep Your Medicare Costs Down 24 

Cloudy and Blurry, or the New Normal? 24 

Not All Email is Created Equal 26 

Arts, Dining and Entertainment 27-31 

February ‘19


4 www.TheValleyBusinessJournal.com 


Career Workshop Series 

for Adults 

at the Ronald H. Roberts 

Temecula Public Library 

Need help jump-starting your job search? This four-part Career Workshop 

Series presented by Mt. San Jacinto College Career Center and the Ronald 

H. Roberts Temecula Public Library may be your answer. The series will 

cover the topics of job searching, networking, cover letters, and interviewing. 

All sessions 

will be held at the Ronald H. Roberts Temecula Public Library (30600 

Pauba Road) in February & March. 

DATE TIME TOPIC 

Tuesday, Feb.19th 2:30 pm to 4:00 pm Job Search 

Tuesday, Feb. 26th 2:30 pm to 4:00 pm Networking 

Tuesday, March 5th 2:30 pm to 4:00 pm Cover Letters 

Tuesday, March 12t 2:30 pm to 4:00 p Rocking the Interview 

Registration is required and begins two weeks prior to each scheduled program. 

Space is limited and carpooling is encouraged. 

For additional information, please call (951) 693-8940. 

The Future of Work is Coming - 

Are We Ready? 

EDC Announces Initiative to Attract 

Employers/Employees 

At the Board Meeting of the 

Economic Development Coalition 

in January, Executive Director Doug 

McAllister lobbed out a new, bold initiative: 

The Future of Work. Addressing 

the need to anticipate and get ahead 

of the workforce needs of our current 

and future employers or lose them, 

The Future of Work is designed to be 

an innovative, world-class effort to set 

our region up to be the best region in 

California to do business in California. 

It will be held April 18th at the MSJC 

Temecula Valley campus. 

He explained: “In today’s world, 

industries and businesses have a decent 

idea of what the workforce needs 

to look like. However, the training of 

that workforce typically lags behind 

the need. Due to the nature of our current 

educational model coupled with 

the incredible rate of change in what 

employers need, there is frustration on 

both sides. As a result, by the time the 

new graduates are ready to be hired, 

either the need has evaporated, or the 

employers have gone somewhere else 

where the employees they need already 

exist. 

McAllister’s plan is to develop a 

strategic plan that educators and 

employers use to stay ahead of 

the game. As such, The Future 

of Work will be a massive work 

group developing quantifiable 

outcomes, not just another talking 

club. “I will guarantee you have 

never seen anything like this in 

our region,” he said. “We are 

working to overcome the ‘Lag’ 

that is associated with this kind 

of planning—because we can’t 

assume that work today will look 

anything like what work will be 

like in the future.” 

Among the initiative’s stakeholders 

are the region’s major and 

small businesses, all five of the 

region’s cities, Riverside County and 

at least four major colleges and universities. 

“If we don’t know what the 

future of work looks like,” McAllister 

said, “we’re planning for yesterday.” 

This new kind of planning could have 

an impact on everything from zoning 

to college courses; from general city 

planning to attracting developers. 

Next, the delegates will meet with 

futurist Nancy Giordano, described as 

one of the top female futurists in the 

nation. Her job at this conference is to 

project into the future by taking all the 

data and developing what the future of 

work will look like here, in this region. 

At the end of the day, the taskforce 

will build a substantive plan based on 

the raw data and designed to meet the 

future needs of employers, employees 

and education. 

This event will sell out, according to 

McAllister. The first 400 attendees 

will be seated. Individual tickets are 

on sale for $75 per person. Please see 

the website for more information: 

www.edcswca.com or call 951-694- 

9800 to register.




5




Lake Elsinore Chamber of 

Commerce Announces 

‘2018 Business of the Year’ Nominees 

Non-Profit Nominees for our 2018 Non-Profit of The Year 

Animal Friends of the Valleys 

Boys and Girls Club of Southwest County 

Cops for Kids 

Julia Lee Performing Arts Academy 

Riverside Recovery Resources 

SCORE 

Warrior Built Foundation 

Small Business Nominees for our 2018 Business of The Year 

Jojos Pizza 

Main Street Kitchen & Tap 

Maximum Sign Co 

Mission Optometry 

Ur Wire Guy 

Watermark Associates, LLC 

Medium Business Nominees for our 2018 Business of The Year 

CJs Sports Grill & Turf Club 

El Comal Restaurant 

Grocery Outlet of Lake Elsinore 

Prometo Produce 

Rancho Physical Therapy 

SERVPRO of Lake Elsinore/Menifee/Perris 

Large Business Nominees for our 2018 Business of The YeaR 

Chandler Aggregates, Inc. 

Elsinore Valley Municipal Water District (EVMWD) 

Golden Corral Restaurant 

Lake Elsinore Storm 

Lowes 

Tractor Supply Company 

Please join us for our 70th Annual Installation Dinner and Awards Ceremony on Saturday February 16th at 6:00 P.M. 

at the Diamond Club. Reservations are filling up so don’t delay! https://lakeelsinorechamber.com/chamberstore/boxoffice/ 

installationdinner. We will announce are winners during our program, but as you can tell by the list of organizations that 

they are ALL winners in our book. 

Thank you for supporting the Lake Elsinore Chamber of Commerce! If you have any questions, please 

contact us at (951) 245-8848 or visit our website at www.lakeelsinorechamber.com. Visit us on Facebook. 

www.facebook.com/lakeelsinorechamber 

Organizing for the New Year 

by Ted Saul, Sr. Staff Writer 

Early in the New Year is an excellent 

time to review current organizational 

practices and start new habits. Take 

a look back and identify what reduced 

your productivity and apply some of the 

following steps to get yourself off to a 

good start. 

1. Clean out old files and de-clutter to 

make it easier to find what you need. 

Check IRS retention requirements for 

business and tax documents and consider 

shredding the rest. 

2. Reprioritize projects, tasks and 

routines. Put the most important first 

to get the attention needed. Define 

dependencies highlighting those to be 

completed before another is started. 

3. Whether an electronic app or a paper 

solution, be sure your calendar is 

updated with reoccurring meetings and 

appointments, so nothing is missed in 

the new year. Don’t hesitate to block 

personal time for yourself as well. 

4. Examine your system of managing 

projects. Looking back at last year can 

tell a story. Were goals and milestones 

met or did projects get delayed and 

rescheduled constantly? If so, it may 

be time for a process overhaul. 

5. Organize technology. Determine 

which tools work best for you and 

consolidate where you go to find the 

information you need. If your work 

area is cluttered with cables consider 

replacing keyboards, mice, etc. with 

wireless technology. Update software 

where appropriate including programs, 

applications and operating systems. 

Make sure your environment works for 

you. 

6. Perform an efficiency check. How 

well run are the meetings you attend. Is 

there a defined agenda before starting? 

Email can easily become overwhelming 

so look for ways to streamline its 

use by reducing unwanted messages, 

inconsistent standards and an inefficient 

filing system for finding old conversations. 

If texting is a primary method of 

communication, be sure it’s being used 

appropriately. This goes for all online 

presence and social media. Make reducing 

distractions and interruptions 

generated by phone notifications, 

unwanted texts and email pop-ups a 

priority for the year. 

As you go through the process ask 

yourself what slows down my efficiency 

and what can be changed to bring improvement? 

Would learning a new skill 

help? Define where to start your day 

and what specific tasks should be done 

first such as answering email, returning 

phone calls or reviewing the day’s 

schedule. The key is to take control 

before someone or something else does. 

Ted Saul is a business coach that assists 

with Business Plans and Project Management. 

He holds a master certificate 

in project management and has earned 

his MBA from Regis University. Ted 

can be reached on LinkedIn, TedS787 

on Twitter or emailing Ted@tsaul.com. 


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For questions, comments, or story ideas, please 

e-mail publishertvbj@verizon.net or 

call (951) 461-0400. 

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Email: publishertvbj@verizon.net 

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(951) 461-0400 

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Helen M. Ryan 

www.HelenMRyan.com 

VP OF DISTRIBUTION 

Dane Wunderlich 

STAFF WRITERS/ 

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS 

Gene Wunderlich 

Ted Saul 

Helen M. Ryan 

Stefani Laszko 

Nicole Albrecht 

Julie Ngo 

Tracey Papke 

Tom Plant 

Esther Phahla 

Dr. Dennis Petersen 

Steve Amante 

Dr. Derek Albrecht 

Monique deGroot 

Andrea Shoup 

Gloria Wolnick 

Dr. Drake Levasheff, PhD 

Mort J. Grabel, Esq. 

John & Christine Hamby 

Heather Petersen 

Brian Connors 

Scott Chappell 

Tristin Collopy 

CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS 

Cy Rathbun 

Todd Montgomery 

Tom Plant 

Pat Benter 

Criteria for Submitting Articles: 

1. Since the publication of articles is an added 

public relations feature for our advertisers, 

their articles will be given first priority. Other 

articles will be published on a space available 

basis. 

2. Articles should be submitted as a Word 

document file. 

3. Articles must be business-oriented and 

pertain to the author’s area of expertise. A 

photo of the writer is appropriate. 

4. All submissions are subject to editing by the 

publisher. 

5. Send completed articles by e-mail to: 

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6. Article and advertising deadlines are the 15th 

of each month for the next issue. 

The Valley Business Journal is a California Corporation. 

All rights reserved. Reproduction in any form, in whole or 

in part, without the written permission of the Publisher 

is prohibited. The publication is published monthly. The 

opinions and views expressed in these pages are those 

of the writer or person interviewed and not necessarily 

those of The Valley Business Journal. The Valley Business 

Journal hereby expressly limits its liability resulting 

from any and all misprints, errors and/or inaccuracies 

any advertisement or editorial may contain, to the 

credit of the specific advertising payment and/or the 

running of a corrected advertisement or editorial 

correction notice.




7 

Fault and Liability for Motor Vehicle Accidents 

Several factors, not all of them 

obvious, determines who is liable for 

damages resulting from a motor vehicle 

accident. For example, a motorist is 

seriously injured when another motorist 

cuts in front of him after turning onto the 

street. However, he may be found liable 

if he was speeding or made an illegal lane 

change prior to the collision. The decision 

of who pays for damages in an accident 

rests primarily on motor vehicle statutes, 

rather than the traditional, common law 

definition of “fault.” 

The automobile insurance industry 

lobbied state legislatures to base these 

types of accident liability more on motor 

vehicle statutes than on common law notions 

of fault. This has made it easier for 

insurers to challenge fault when the other 

party in an accident has violated a traffic 

law, especially since liability insurance 

is required in California. For example, a 

motorist lacking liability insurance may 

not be able to collect for damages even 

if the other motorist was negligent for a 

traffic accident. 

This article explains the meaning of 

fault in vehicular collisions with respect 

to common law and motor vehicle codes, 

since it differs from other types of claims. 

Common Law - In its purest form, 

“fault” for causing an accident is either 

created by law or defined by common 

law. Common law recognizes four basic 

levels of fault: 

Negligence, Recklessness or Wanton 

Conduct, Intentional Misconduct, Strict 

Liability (regardless of fault) 

1. Negligence generally means careless 

or inadvertent conduct that results in 

harm or damage, which is common 

in automobile accidents. One can be 

negligent by failing to do something, 

such as not yielding the right-of-way 

to avoid an accident, as well as by 

actively doing something such as 

running a red light. 

2. Reckless or wanton conduct refers to 

a willful disregard for the safety and 

welfare of others. 

3. Intentional Misconduct is clear by 

its words 

4. Strict liability may be imposed, even 

in the absence of fault, for accidents 

involving certain defective products 

or extra hazardous activities such as 

the transporting of explosive chemicals. 

Under common law, individuals who 

have caused a car accident have committed 

a “tort,” a private wrong against 

another (but not rising to the level of an 

intentional tort or crime). Those who 

have committed torts are referred to as 

“tortfeasors” under the law. Many automobile 

insurance policies use the word 

“tortfeasor” to refer to people who are at 

least partly at fault. 

There is rarely a question of fault 

when a motorist has engaged in intentional 

or reckless misconduct, such as 

drunk driving. But when it comes to 

general negligence, as in fender-benders, 

establishing fault becomes more complex. 

More than one motorist may be found at 

least partially responsible. When this is 

the case and there are multiple tortfeasors 

involved, state law dictates who must pay 

for damage to property and injuries to the 

involved parties. 

Motor Vehicle Statutory Violations 

- California has multiple laws regulating 

the manner in which drivers must operate 

their vehicles upon public roads. Many 

of these statutes are actually codified 

versions of the common law, while others 

are the result of legislative initiative. The 

important point to remember is that a violation 

of any of these statutes generally 

creates a presumption of negligence as a 

matter of law. For instance, California requires 

motorcyclists and their passengers 

to wear helmets. Failure to do so is an act 

of negligence, which may affect liability 

in an accident. 

Thus, fault in an accident may be 

established merely by citing a statute that 

has been violated. A motorist presumed 

to have caused an accident by virtue of 

a statutory violation bears the burden of 

proving that this act of negligence was 

not a proximate cause of the injuries. 

For example, the motorcyclist who fails 

to wear a helmet suffers a serious brain 

injury after a motorist driving a car accidentally 

sideswipes him. The motorist 

may have been negligent, but so was the 

motorcyclist who didn’t wear a helmet. 

The simplest way to apply the concept 

of proximate cause to an automobile 

accident is to ask whether it would be true 

that, “but for” the violation, the accident 

would not have occurred. With respect 

to the motorcyclist example, the helmet 

would not have prevented the accident but 

most likely would have limited the motorcyclist’s 

injuries. Therefore, the motorist 

may not be held completely liable for the 

motorcyclist’s brain injury. 

Contact the Law Offices of Morton 

Grabel for a Free Claim Evaluation -If 

you think that someone was at fault in an 

accident you were involved in, you should 

have the facts of your claim reviewed 

as soon as possible. The good news is 

that the Law Office of Morton Grabel 

will evaluate your situation for free. Our 

attorneys will be able to tell you whether 

someone was negligent or reckless in 

causing harm to you, and whether you 

might be able to collect damages to cover 

your losses. 

THE LAW OFFICE OF MOR- 

TON GRABEL HAS RECOVERED 

MILLIONS OF DOLLARS FOR 

CLIENTS THROUGHTOUT THE 

INLAND EMPIRE. 

Please note by reading the information 

above & herein, no attorney-client relationship 

has been created. The information 

provided herein is not to be relied 

upon as legal advice for your specific 

legal needs. Should you have legal questions 

contact The Law Offices Morton J. 

Grabel in Temecula at (951) 695- 7700. 

Mort, originally from Philadelphia PA, 

attended an ABA Law School, has an 

MBA, a Real Estate Broker’s License, a 

CA Nursing Home Administrator’s License 

and is a member in good standing 

of various local Chambers of Commerce. 

LEGAL 

by 

Morton by J. Grabel, Esq. 

Steve Fillingim







9 

Non-Medical Home Care Helps Adults 

Achieve the Quality of Life They Deserve 

Regardless of age, background 

or location, most people today have 

something in common: They want 

independence, freedom and quality of 

life. FirstLight Home Care of Temecula 

is designed to help adults achieve 

all those things. 

FirstLight provides quality, affordable 

non-medical home care not 

just for the older adult who is aging 

in place, but also for other adults 

who need assistance with activities 

of daily living. FirstLight is a lifeline 

for seniors; people with disabilities; 

those recovering from surgery, illness 

or injury; Veterans, and new and busy 

mothers. 

“Non-medical home care fills the 

gap between medically skilled services 

and the everyday tasks that a person 

is able to complete for themselves,” 

said John Hamby, Owner of FirstLight 

Home Care of Temecula. “Our services 

provide the resources needed to 

sustain our clients’ independence and 

freedom and help family caregivers 

maintain flexibility and balance in 

their own lives.” 

Central to the FirstLight caregiving 

approach is a client-first philosophy 

that matches clients with caregivers 

who fit the personality, needs and 

vision of the client and family. Caregiving 

partnerships are built on trust, 

communication and an understanding 

of a client’s needs. 

“Our caregivers have been there, 

and they understand the challenges 

families face when caring for loved 

ones,” said Hamby. “FirstLight caregivers 

are direct employees, not contractors. 

Plus, we conduct thorough 

screenings and background checks, 

and every caregiver must complete our 

rigorous care training.” 

Diverse Home Care Solutions - 

FirstLight’s non-medical home care 

solutions provide support to people 

with a wide range of needs and the 

resources necessary to help adults 

maintain quality of life. 

Personal Care aids with activities 

of daily living, such as bathing and hygiene, 

walking and mobility, transfer 

and posturing, special diets and meal 

preparation. 

Companion Care provides companionship 

through regular visits, as 

well as medication reminders, light 

housekeeping, laundry services, errands 

and transportation. 

Respite Care allows family caregivers 

to step out of their everyday 

routines and take time for themselves, 

while FirstLight professionals ensure 

loved ones are cared for. 

Dementia Care provides personalized 

care plans to help dementia sufferers 

and their families cope with the 

anxiety, confusion and isolation that 

are often associated with the disease. 

FirstLight Home Care is a leading 

provider of non-medical home care, 

helping individuals achieve the quality 

of life they deserve. Our professional 

caregivers can provide care at private 

residences, independent and assisted 

living communities and other healthcare 

facility settings. 

This article is provided by John and 

Christine Hamby, Owners, FirstLight 

Home Care of Temecula. For more information, 

visit us online at Temecula. 

FirstLightHomeCare.com or call us at 

951-395-0821




Helping Adults with Autism Find 

Employment 

by Diane Strand & Johanna Lack 

Are you an adult with autism 

who is struggling to find a job? Or 

maybe you know someone – a friend 

or family member with developmental 

disabilities who really wants 

to work but can’t find an employer 

willing to hire them. This isn’t an 

unusual situation. According to the 

national advocacy organization, 

Autism Speaks, “National data indicates 

that the vast majority of adults 

with autism are either unemployed 

or underemployed, with estimates 

ranging as high as 90%.” One of 

the biggest issues hampering employment 

for this population is their 

need to learn proper social behavior 

in the workplace - skills that most 

of the mainstream population can 

take for granted, such as self-care, 

self-advocacy, punctuality and regular 

attendance. 

Fortunately, there are many organizations 

and programs set up by 

nonprofits and government agencies 

that teach autistic adults these important 

life skills and prepare them 

for success. Organizations like the 

State of California Department of 

Rehabilitation (DOR) provide job 

coaching and job placement for those 

who need it. In addition, many cities 

also offer assistance to adults with 

disabilities through their workforce 

training programs which include 

social skills training and on-site job 

coaching. 

Another organization, Inland 

Regional Center (IRC), is one of the 

larger nonprofit agencies and a leader 

in servicing people with autism and 

other disabilities. IRC, as part of a 

statewide network of regional centers 

established by the state of California, 

provides case management and 

service coordination for more than 

35,000 consumers in Riverside and 

San Bernardino counties; their very 

effective programs, run by community-service 

providers, job-train clients 

in order for them to find gainful 

employment. 

A new popular IRC job-training 

program, offered by Temecula-based 

nonprofit JDS Creative Academy 

(JDSCA), provides video production 

instruction to developmentally disabled 

clients. Their digital creative 

arts program imparts hands-on training 

in a working studio environment, 

teaching collaboration, soft skills, 

technical skills, logistics and more 

through visual, performing and digital 

arts. The program’s purpose is to 

produce and distribute a feature-style 

newscast for Riverside County. 

The show, Spectrum of Innovation, 

streams monthly and is attracting a 

growing number of viewers. 

JDSCA’s job training program 

started just nine months ago and is 

already almost at capacity, which 

shows the need for this type of 

job-training. Their clients’ work can 

be seen on the website spectrumofinnovation.org 

and on their YouTube 

Channel, SOI News & Information 

Spectrum of Innovation 

JDS Creative Academy (JD- 

SCA), is a nonprofit 501c3 organization 

in Temecula, servicing the entire 

Temecula Valley and surrounding 

regions with a mission to inspire, 

educate, and enhance achievement in 

workforce development by providing 

job skills and hands-on training in 

the visual, performing and digital 

arts. JDSCA works with foster and 

at-risk youth, autistic young adults, 

and mainstream populations, creating 

cross-collaborative enrichment, 

workforce training, and a creative 

environment. www.jdscreativeacademy.org 

951-296-6715. 

Support 

Support 

your 

your 

local 

local 

nonprofits. 

nonprofits. 

They 

They 

need 

need 

your 

your 

skills, 

skills, 

your 

your 

ideas 

ideas 

and 

and 

your 

your 

support. 

support.


What Makes a Window Energy Efficient? 

by Jennifer Evans 

Many factors determine a window’s 

energy efficiency. The first is Low-E 

(Emissivity). It’s a reflective coating on 

the glass that reflects heat. Low-E works 

to keep homes comfortable year-round. 

In the winter, heat is reflected into the 

room instead of leaking out into the environment. 

In the summer, the outside 

coating reflects UV rays out, so that it 

doesn’t penetrate the glass. Reflecting 

UV rays also reduces the ability for 

the sun to fade carpet, furniture, and 

upholstery. 

The next attribute for energy-efficiency 

is argon gas. It’s an irenic gas and 

fills the gap between the glass, raising 

the R-value of the window. R-value 

is a measurement of insulation. As an 

example, for insulating a wall, you 

would choose from R 13, R 15, or R 

19, depending on how thick your walls 

are. Argon adds some insulating feature 

as well. 

Obviously, a window is a big hole 

in your wall with glass in it, so the more 

insulating factor or R-value you can get, 

the more energy efficient it is. Thus, argon 

increases the R-value and keeps the 

heat in or out depending on the weather 

and temperatures outside. 

When replacement windows were 

first on the market, there was often a 

lot of condensation around the edges 

of the window. New technology and a 

better-made window have mostly eliminated 

this. It reduces the heat transfer, 

which in turn, cuts down on any condensation 

around the window. 

Another way windows are energy 

efficient is the use of interlocking meeting 

rails. It is a feature that locks the 

window tight and prevents air to pass 

through. When there are two sashes, 

there will be an interlocking meeting 

rail. Weatherstripping is another feature 

of new replacement windows that 



delivers the ultimate benefit. Weatherstripping 

should be placed where this is 

vinyl to vinyl contact in or other frame 

material such as wood, fiberglass, or aluminum. 

The weatherstripping prevents 

you from being able to see right outside. 

Weatherstripping helps decrease drafts, 

especially in colder or windy weather. 

As you can see, all these energy-efficient 

improvements for replacement 

windows help consumers reduce energy 

costs. Replacing old windows with 

ENERGYSTAR® certified windows, 

the U.S. government’s label for windows 

meeting certain thresholds lowers 

household energy bills by an average 

of 12% nationwide. Lower energy consumption 

also reduces greenhouse gas 

emissions from power plants and homes. 

If you are considering replacing 

your windows, be sure to ask about 

the energy-efficient characteristics of 

the window so that you make a sound 

investment. 

For more information, please call or 

visit our showroom at: Andy’s Glass 

and Windows, 25751 Jefferson Avenue, 

Murrieta, Ca 92562. 951-677-7421 

ask for Jennifer Evans or email me at 

JenniferE@andysglass.com. 

11 

BWN’s February 12th Meeting - 

2019 Meet & Greet Luncheon 

Come and join us for our exclusive 

New Member “try us out” meeting... 

lunch is on us! Join us and find out if 

YOU are our next member. You must 

RSVP to attend 614-519-9167. 

When: Tuesday, February 12 from 

12:00 - 1:30 p.m. 

Where: The Broken Yolk Cafe - 26495 

Ynez Road, Temecula 

BWN’s February 26th meeting will 

feature a practical, business-building 

workshop for members and guests. 

About BWN - Since 1992, Business 

Women’s Network of Temecula Valley 

(BWN) has been a premier women’s 

networking group dedicated to the highest 

standards of professionalism and the 

exchange of business leads. Our structured, 

yet relaxed luncheon program 

provides members the time and place to 

introduce themselves, their products and 

services during each meeting. Membership 

includes group membership in the 

Temecula Chamber of Commerce. We 

are all about promoting ourselves and 

each other and building strategic relationships 

with other local professional 

women while having fun. We meet at 

noon on the second and fourth Tuesdays 

at The Broken Yolk Café at 26495 Ynez 

Rd in Temecula. Check us out at http:// 

business-womens-network-temecula. 

com/




How Will Tax Reform Impact Your 

Deductions and Credits This Tax Season? 

MONEY 

by 

Esther Phahla, 

CPA, CTC, MST 

With tax season here, chances 

are you are probably asking yourself 

which tax deductions and tax credits 

will you be able to claim for your 

2018 tax return, unless of course you 

did some tax planning before the end 

of 2018 and you have an idea of what 

to expect this tax season. 

Tax credits and tax deductions are 

said to be the most satisfying part of 

preparing your tax return, because they 

reduce your tax bill, and put money 

into your pockets. But they do this in 

different ways. First, let’s review the 

difference between a deduction and a 

credit. 

A Tax deduction: is used to decrease 

taxable income, thereby decreasing the 

amount of tax owed. They are calculated 

using your marginal tax bracket. 

For example, if Rose is in the 24% tax 

bracket, a $1,000 tax deduction will 

save her $240. 

A Tax Credit: is subtracted not from 

taxable income but directly from a 

person’s tax liability; thus it reduces 

taxes dollar for dollar. It could be refundable 

or non-refundable. Looking 

at the example with Rose above, a tax 

credit of $1,000 will lower her tax bill 

by $1,000. 

There are 2 types of Tax Deductions: 

Standard Deduction and Itemized 

Deductions. You can use one or the 

other but not both. It is generally recommended 

that you take the greater of 

the two unless special circumstances 

apply. Many taxpayers who itemized 

in the past will face a big question this 

year: whether is it still worth itemizing 

given the new higher standard 

deduction? 

1. Standard Deduction: is a set 

amount that ensures all taxpayers 

have at least some income that 

is not subject to federal tax (i.e., 

tax-free). Even if you have no 

other qualifying deductions, the 

IRS lets you take this deduction 

and no-question about it. It varies 

according to your filing status. 

For 2018 tax returns the standard 

deduction has nearly doubled 

($12,000 for Single filers and 

Married filing separate, $24,000 

for Married filing jointly, $18,000 

for Head of household). 

2. Itemized Deductions: allow you to 

list qualified expenses on your tax 

return, the sum of which is used to 

lower your adjusted gross income, 

such as home mortgage interest on 

up to $750,000 of new home acquisition 

debt, state and local taxes 

up to $10,000, medical expenses 

over 7.5% of your adjusted gross 

income and charitable donations. 

Let’s recap a few of the common credits 

and deductions for 2018: 

1. Child tax credit: increased to 

$2,000 and a new credit of $500 

for non-children dependents was 

introduced. 

2. Credit for child care: up to $1,050 

for one child and $2,100 for 2+ 

children. 

3. Earned Income Credit: up to 

$6,431 with 3+ children. 

4. Education credits: up to $2,500 for 

the American Opportunity Credit, 

up to $2,000 per return Lifetime 

Learning credit, up to $2,500 Student 

loan interest deduction. 

The following are eliminated: 

1. Exemptions: With the increase of 

the standard deduction, came the 

elimination of the exemptions. 

2. Unreimbursed employee expenses. 

3. Moving expenses: except for active 

duty military. 

Consult your Tax Advisor to make 

sure you are taking advantage of all 

the tax deductions and credits that are 

available to you. 

Esther Phahla is a Certified Public 

Accountant and Certified Tax 

Strategist in Temecula. She is the 

Best-Selling Author of tax planning 

books, “Why Didn’t My CPA Tell Me 

That” and “10 Most Expensive Tax 

Mistakes That Cost Business Owners 

Thousands”. She also holds a Masters 

of Science in Taxation. She can 

be reached at (951) 514-2652 or visit 

www.estherphahlacpa.com 

“ Tax credits and tax 

deductions are said 

to be the most satisfying 

part of preparing 

your tax return, 

because they reduce 

your tax bill, and put 

money into your 

pockets.




13 

EXECUTIVE PROFILE | Monique deGroot 

Through Monique deGroots’s hard work, enthusiastic personality, and creativity she has put her own indelible touch on the 

business once owned by her parents, Ronald and Michelle deGroot. She attributes the foundation of her success to their positive 

influence and love. Monique has given the City of Murrieta, Los Angeles, Orange County, San Diego and Riverside County, a place 

to escape and relax from the fast pace world for over 30 years. 

Affiliations 

I belong to the Murrieta and Temecula 

Chamber of Commerce, Local 706 

Make-up, I.A.T.S.E, and Hair Union 

of Los Angeles, the International Spa 

Associates, and contributes articles to a 

variety of Beauty and Hair Magazines. 

In addition to owning and managing 

the Murrieta Day Spa, Monique is active 

in the community and donates to Camp 

Del Corazon, Boys and Girls Club, Michelle’s 

Place and Charity for Charity to 

mention a few. Monique does as much 

for the community as she can, through 

giving Spa services, packages and products 

for fundraising auctions. 

Goals 

To teach people the art of relaxing, 

exercise, and nutrition. It must be learned 

and practiced on a regular basic, by doing 

this I believe it would improve the quality 

of life. “I love being able to make people 

look and feel their best” says Monique, 

“Beauty starts from the inside out. I think 

feeling good, being kind, and loving 

yourself is the key to happiness.” 

Industry Accolades 

Meeting Oprah Winfrey and having 

the opportunity to be on “The Oprah 

Winfrey Show” for a makeover segment 

was one of the highlights of my life. Also 

working with Aaron Spelling on his show 

“Melrose Place” as the ‘Head Hairstylist’ 

for three seasons was an amazing 

experience. 

In addition to working on many 

television show like ‘Buffy the Vampire 

Slayer’ and ‘Desperate Housewives’, I 

had a chance to do some amazing commercials 

for IBM, NIKE, Pepsi, Taco 

Bell and Disney. 

Mentors 

My Mom and Dad have always 

worked really hard and are great role 

models for me with their love and persistence. 

I always felt like I could achieve 

or accomplish anything I put my mind to. 

Jeffery Hamilton, an extraordinary 

make-up artist who has worked on some 

of the biggest names in show business; 

Cher, Heather Locklear, Jessica Beal 

(just to name a few). Jeffery took me 

under his wing and showed me the tips 

and tricks of working with celebrities. 

He inspired and taught me so much. He 

was very instrumental in getting me into 

this film industry. We worked together 

for years until he passed. I miss him very 

much! I know he would be very proud of 

where I am today. 

Favorite Reading 

Autobiographies/Biographies, anything 

to do with Fashion, Beauty, and 

Health. Spa magazines and the good old 

fashioned newspaper. 

Favorite Activity 

Cooking, golfing, camping and traveling 

for “spa research” of course. 

Greatest Business 

Achievement 

Murrieta Day Spa and Hair Studio 

is celebrating 30 years in business in 

2019! Creating a business culture of 

kind, creative and loyal women. I am 

proud to say I have a staff of over forty 

employees and some have been with me 

for over 20 years. We all share a close 

bond, becoming close friends not only in 

the work place but also outside of the spa. 

Birthplace 

Santa Monica, California 

Monique deGroot




A Guide to 2018 Tax Law Changes and 

More (part 1 of 3) 

The legislation popularly known as the Tax Cuts & Jobs Act did not exactly 

“rewrite the book” of federal tax laws, but it almost seems that way. On January 

1, a host of important, new tax provisions entered the Internal Revenue Code, 

and others were suddenly repealed. 

Due to these reforms, federal tax law has changed to a degree unseen since 

the 1980s. This guide reviews the major adjustments to the Internal Revenue 

Code and more: 

• Key tax changes for households 

• Key tax changes for businesses 

• Tax breaks gone in 2018 

• Social Security & Medicare changes 

• COLAs & Phase-Out Range Adjustments 

• Last, but not least, some other, interesting developments 

Just a reminder as you read this guide: you should consult with a qualified 

tax or financial professional before making short-term or long-term changes to 

your tax or financial strategy. 

Key Tax Changes for Households - Whether you file singly, jointly, or as a 

head of household, you will want to keep these significant alterations to federal tax 

law in mind. These new tax provisions will remain in place through at least 2025. 

1 - Lower income tax rates and adjusted tax brackets. Thanks to the tax reforms, 

the seven income tax brackets of 10%, 15%, 25%, 28%, 33%, 35%, and 

39.6% have been revised to 10%, 12%, 22%, 24%, 32%, 35%, and 37%. The 

new taxable income thresholds: 

The federal government is now using the Chained Consumer Price Index to 

calculate inflation. That should reduce the size of the yearly adjustments to these 

brackets. 

In scrutinizing all this, you may notice something: the “marriage penalty” 

applying to combined incomes is nearly gone. That is, the thresholds for joint filers 

are simply double what they are for single filers for five of the seven brackets. Only 

married couples in the two uppermost brackets now face the “marriage penalty.” 

2 - The standard deduction nearly doubles. While the personal exemption is 

gone (more about that later), the new law gives an enormous boost to the standard 

deduction in 2018 for all filers. 

• Single filer: $12,000 (instead of $6,500) 

• Married couples filing separately: $12,000 (instead of $6,500) 

• Head of household: $18,000 (instead of $9,350) 

• Married couples filing jointly & surviving spouses: $24,000 (instead of 

$13,000) 

Incidentally, the additional standard deduction remains in place. Single filers 

who are blind, disabled, or aged 65 or older can claim an additional $1,600 deduction 

for 2018. Married joint filers can claim additional standard deductions of 

$1,300 each for a total additional standard deduction of $2,600 in 2018.3 

3 - AMT exemption amounts are much larger. The Alternative Minimum Tax 

was never intended to apply to the middle class – but because it went decades 

without inflation adjustments, it sometimes did. Thanks to the tax reforms, the 

AMT exemption amounts are now permanently subject to inflation indexing. 

Look at the change in AMT exemption amounts for 2018: 

• Single filer or head of household: $70,300 (was $54,300 in 2017) 

• Married couples filing separately: $54,700 (was $42,250 in 2017) 

• Married couples filing jointly & surviving spouses: $109,400 (was $84,500 

in 2017) 

These increases are certainly sizable, yet they pale in proportion to the increase 

in the phase-out thresholds. They are now at $500,000 for individuals and 

$1 million for joint filers, as opposed to respective, prior thresholds of $120,700 

and $160,900. 2 

MONEY 

Presented by 

Nicole Albrecht




15




What is the Difference Between Estate 

Planning and Financial Planning? 

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It is easy to confuse the two distinct 

fields of estate planning and financial 

planning, especially since they do relate 

to each other and seem similar in 

some respects. It is tempting to think 

of estate planning as only pertaining to 

what happens to assets or property after 

death, but there is an important lifetime 

aspect to estate planning that should not 

be overlooked. 

Financial Planning - Generally speaking, 

financial planning focuses on managing 

your current assets and resources 

to maximize investment gains and 

minimize taxes, as well as analyzing 

your income, budgets and spending. 

Typically, this can be done by a certified 

financial planner who has expertise in 

these areas, and can recommend different 

investment vehicles, strategies and 

instruments. 

However, rarely is a financial planner 

also an attorney with experience in 

probate, trust and tax laws. Where it 

gets tricky is that some asset vehicles 

may affect your estate plan, and how 

ownership is structured and transferred. 

For example, there are specific rules on 

how IRAs are distributed to heirs, that 

differ from other standard investments. 

Estate Planning - Even if you have 

gone through a financial planning process, 

when it comes time to make your 

estate plan some of your financial decisions 

may need to be reevaluated. An 

estate planning attorney can review all 

of your real property assets, investment 

accounts and other property to confirm 

how they are owned and how to best 

distribute them to heirs. 

Other parts of estate planning that 

relate to your current finances are strategies 

such as making annual cash gifts 

to heirs to reduce your estate value and 

setting up current trusts for charity or 

other beneficiaries. To fund a trust, you 

will need to place some type of asset in 

the trust, and that should be more or less 

liquid in case it is needed quickly. 

For example, with rising interest 

rates CDs are becoming popular again, 

and might be recommended as a low risk 

investment vehicle. However, if your 

trust is funded with a CD for a fixed term 

such as one or two years, it could not be 

accessed without penalties. 

Bringing Estate and Financial Planning 

Together 

Ideally, you want to have your estate 

and financial plans compliment each 

other, so that you are taking advantage 

of the best strategies possible. 

If you have questions about making sure 

your financial planning works with your 

estate plan, please contact the attorneys 

at Shoup Legal, A Professional Law 

Corporation at 951-445-4114 to schedule 

an appointment or visit their website 

at www.ShoupLegal.com. 

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Where it gets tricky is that some asset 

vehicles may affect your estate plan, 

and how ownership is structured and 

transferred. For example, there are 

specific rules on how IRAs are distributed 

to heirs, that differ from other 

standard investments. 

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Envisioning Our Future Together 

EDUCATION 

by 

by 

Drake Levasheff, PhD. 

Steve Fillingim 

The innovative spirit of our business 

community is remarkable. This fall we 

saw the launch of a new regional tourism 

campaign that recognizes the destination 

we’ve become, Explore Murrieta. The 

campaign engages social media users 

to tell their travel stories of exploring 

the region’s wineries, hiking trails, 

extreme sports and historic Western 

towns – in essence, the story of us. The 

business incubator at Innovate Murrieta 

is developing strategic partnerships in 

healthcare technology startups and is 

currently working with three startups 

in the launch stage. 

And, the region’s business, industry 

and educational leaders have 

been brainstorming job growth in the 

greater Murrieta/Temecula Valley and 

studying regional economic patterns 

and industries to plan educational pathways 

for the next generation, ensuring 

a well-educated labor supply essential 

to attracting employers paying lucrative 

wages. 

Azusa Pacific University has also 

been engaged in creating new educational 

programs that support our region’s 

emphasis on technology and healthcare 

with the launch of a new Digital Media 

and Communication program in 2019. 

“The region’s focus on healthcare 

tech is a great fit for our graduates,” said 

Pamela Fisher, Digital Media and Communication 

program director. “They’re 

tuned into emerging technologies and the 

role digital media plays in market awareness 

via social media and digital storytelling 

across media platforms – streaming, 

social media, websites and print.” 

Fisher moved to Temecula last 

summer to launch the new bachelor’s 

completion program after 15 years in 

digital media for The San Francisco 

Examiner, Gannett, The Oakland Tribune/ANG 

newsmedia group. She has 

served as a newsroom editor-in-chief, 

digital magazine editor and, until 2016, 

storytelling coach for The USA Today 

network. She joined the faculty of Azusa 

Pacific University in 2017 at main campus 

as a journalism professor. “In our 

program students will create editorial 

content for clients, publishers, nonprofit 

organizations or agencies and polish 

digital storytelling skillsets across media 

platforms: streaming, social media, 

websites and print for client branding or 

online news,” said Fisher. 

Communication studies coursework 

in the two-year bachelor’s degree completion 

program will develop interpersonal 

and conflict resolution skillsets: 

personal presentation skills for client 

presentations and meetings, negotiation 

skills with clients, stakeholders, editors. 

The university’s faith-integration 

teaching model emphasizes faith-based 

media ethics and communication best 

practices. 

Students will be trained to work 

as a social media manager, a nonprofit 

organization communication manager, 

an audience engagement specialist or a 

digital newsroom writer, editor or web 

content creator. The field is growing 7 

to 14 percent annually. A Los Angeles 

Economic Development report found 

over 200,000 professionals working in 

digital media at nearly double Southern 

California’s average salary of $59,890, 

earning an average of $116, 820. 

“We’ll work closely with local organizations 

and businesses to develop 

internships, and graduate placement in 

marketing communication departments, 

PR and ad agencies, healthcare, and 

nonprofits,” said Fisher. The two-year 

degree of 36 units is estimated at a cost 

of $18,450. Classes begin in July. 

Dr. Drake Levasheff is Senior Director 

of Azusa Pacific University’s Murrieta 

Regional Campus. He can be reached 

via email at dlevasheff@apu.edu. 

dlevasheff@apu.edu




Azusa Pacific University Hosts February 27th 

Preview Night & Financial Aid Workshop 

Pneumonia 

Healthy 

Living 

by 

Tina Dennis M. Petersen, Gottlieb, D.O. D.C. 

Pneumonia is an infection of the 

lungs. Even though some people are at 

higher risk than others, anyone can get 

pneumonia. The cause of pneumonia 

isn’t always pneumococcal bacteria, 

but they are the most common cause. 

The signs and symptoms of pneumonia 

vary from mild to severe, depending 

on factors such as the type of 

germ causing the infection, and your 

age and overall health. Mild signs and 

symptoms often are similar to those of 

a cold or flu, but they last longer. 

Signs and symptoms of pneumonia 

may include: 

• Fever, sweating and shaking chills 

• Cough, which may produce phlegm 

• Chest pain when you breathe or 

cough 

• Shortness of breath 

Education and career goals are 

among the top New Year’s resolutions. 

A new year brings new opportunity, 

and there is no better time to take those 

first steps towards a better future by 

returning to school to finish your degree 

or to pursue a graduate degree. Azusa 

Pacific University (APU) invites you to 

attend Preview Night and a Financial 

Aid Workshop on Wednesday, February 

27, where you can learn more about your 

educational and career opportunities. 

This free event will be held at the 

APU Murrieta Regional Campus from 

5:45 pm – 8:00 pm at 40508 Murrieta 

Hot Springs Road, Murrieta (to the right 

of Sam’s Club). Preview Night will also 

include a complimentary dinner and 

campus tours. The application fee will 

be waived for all attendees who apply 

for a program! 

In addition, a Financial Aid Workshop 

will be offered at 5:00 pm to prospective 

students looking to learn how to 

maximize financial aid and scholarship 

opportunities. The goal of this workshop 

is to help the student understand the 

steps necessary to be financially ready 

to attend APU. 

Designed for adult students, APU 

Preview Night gives you an opportunity 

to meet faculty and staff, learn about 

academic programs, the admission 

process, financial assistance, and career 

opportunities within the following 

graduate and degree completions programs 

offered at the Murrieta Regional 

Campus: 

• Teacher Education: Master’s Degrees 

& Credentials 

• School Counseling & Psychology: 

Master’s Degrees & LPCC Respecialization 

Certificate 

• usiness: Bachelor & Master’s 

Degrees 

• Psychology: Bachelor Degree 

• Criminal Justice: Bachelor Degree 

• Digital Media & Communication: 

Bachelor Degree 

Azusa Pacific University is a military-friendly 

college committed to honoring 

those who serve our country by 

making a quality education for military 

members, veterans, and their families 

an affordable reality. A representative 

from APU’s Military & Veteran Services 

will be on hand to talk about how the 

students may use their military benefits. 

APU proudly participates in the Yellow 

Ribbon Program. 

APU is a leading Christian university 

and is recognized annually 

among the nation’s best colleges by 

U.S. News & World Report and The 

Princeton Review. The APU Murrieta 

Regional Campus is proud to be a part 

of Southwest Riverside County for over 

30 years. 

The February 27th “APU Preview 

Night” is for adults and their guests (age 

18+). If you have questions or would 

like to RSVP, please call (951) 304-3400 

or email: murrieta@apu.edu. To learn 

more about APU and these programs 

visit apu.edu/murrieta. 

• Fatigue 

• Nausea, vomiting or diarrhea 

Early treatment for pneumonia is 

most effective. See a doctor right away 

if you think you might have pneumonia. 

Exactly which drug is used to treat pneumonia 

depends on the type of germ and 

on your doctor’s treatment strategy. In 

most cases, treatment must be continued 

until most symptoms are gone. 

• Antibiotics can cure bacterial pneumonia 

and make recovery from mycoplasma 

pneumonia much quicker. 

• Antiviral drugs can be used to treat 

certain types of viral pneumonia, 

but there is not yet any treatment 

that works against all causes. 

• Supportive treatment often helps. 

This can include medicines that 

ease chest pain and relieve violent 

coughing. Sometimes oxygen is 

needed. In all cases, a proper diet 

speeds recovery. 

For more information on pneumonia, 

call Dr. Dennis Petersen at (951) 506- 

3112. 

19 

Visit Temecula Valley Announces New 2019 

Leadership 

Visit Temecula Valley (VTV), the 

Southern California region’s official 

destination sales and tourism marketing 

organization – and the catalyst 

for $724 million, direct, local visitor 

spending annually – has announced the 

election of new, 2019 executive officers 

and directors. The sixteen-member 

VTV board is composed of distinguished, 

tourism and travel industry, 

business leaders. 

The executive officers are from 

Pechanga Resort Casino, Grapeline 

Wine Tours, Embassy Suites Hotel, 

Temecula Creek Inn, Promenade Mall 

Temecula, and Wilson Creek Winery. 

The directors are with A Grape Escape 

Balloon Adventure, Temecula Valley 

Winery Management, Springhill Suites 

by Marriott, South Coast Winery 

Resort & Spa, Melody’s Ad Works, 

Net Results Hospitality Development 

Group, Inc., Robert Renzoni Vineyards 

& Winery, Inland Management Group, 

Galway Downs, and Quality Inn Temecula 

Valley Wine Country. Newer officers 

and directors inject fresh insights 

while continuing and re-elected board 

members ensure strong expertise and 

sufficient continuity. 

“It’s truly an honor to have been 

elected as Visit Temecula Valley’s 

Chairman of the Board,” said Scott 

Wilson, Director of Sales at Pechanga 

Resort Casino. With more than 

27 years in the hospitality industry, 

Scott’s curriculum vitae (CV) includes 

numerous sales leadership roles with 

Visit Monterey (Monterey County, 

California, Convention and Visitors 

Bureau), and Visit Las Vegas (Las 

Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority), 

and at both Starwood and 

Hyatt luxury hotels. 

“I have enjoyed serving on the 

Visit Temecula Valley board of directors 

the past two years and being part 

of the substantial tourism growth in 

Temecula Valley,” Scott continued. 

“Our city has so much to offer. It will 

be great to work with a diverse and talented 

team of professionals to tell our 

story of Temecula Valley – Southern 

California Wine Country.” 

The 2019 VTV executive officers 

also include: First Vice Chairman, 

John Kelliher (Grapeline Wine Tours, 

Founder and Owner, and Visit California 

board member); First Vice Chairman 

– Tourism Improvement District 

Advisory Board, Victor Morgenroth 

(Embassy Suites Hotel, General Manager); 

and Second Vice Chairman, 

Tom DeMott (Temecula Creek Inn, 

General Manager). Rounding out the 

executive board are Secretary, Kym 

Espinoza (Promenade Temecula, 

Marketing Director); and Treasurer, 

Bill Wilson (Wilson Creek Winery, 

CEO and Owner). Kym was recently 

re-elected to the VTV board for a new 

three-year term. 

Also re-elected as VTV Board Directors 

are Cherise Manning (A Grape 

Escape Balloon Adventure, Owner and 

Vice President, and VTV Immediate 

Past Chairman of the Board); and 

Spencer Szcygiel (Temecula Valley 

Winery Management, Director of 

Restaurant Operations). The additional 

2019 VTV Directors include Pamela 

Bradley (Springhill Suites by Marriott, 

Sales Manager); Melody Brunsting 

(Melody’s Ad Works, Owner); Denis 

Ferguson (Net Results Hospitality & 

Development Group, Inc., Managing 

Partner); Robert Renzoni (Robert 

Renzoni Vineyards & Winery, Owner); 

Jan Smith (Inland Management Group, 

Owner); Ken Smith (Galway Downs, 

Owner); and Ken Westmyer (Quality 

Inn, General Manager). 

ABOUT VISIT TEMECULA 

VALLEY AND THE LOCAL TOUR- 

ISM ECONOMY 

Visit Temecula Valley, a non-profit 

501c (6) organization in its fifteenth 

year of operation in 2019, increases 

awareness of Temecula Valley, stimulates 

economic growth and tourism, 

and measures visitor spending. The 

Temecula Valley Tourism Business 

Improvement District, Pechanga Development 

Corporation, the City of 

Temecula, and the Temecula Valley 

Wine Country Tourism Marketing District 

provide funding for strategic VTV 

marketing efforts. Under founding 

President and CEO, Kimberly Adams, 

a professional Visit Temecula Valley 

staff of twelve carries out VTV leadership-approved 

programs and policies. 

A dynamic Southern California 

destination recognized for its natural 

gifts of climate and geography, Temecula 

Valley is comprised of three primary 

visitor attractions: Temecula Valley 

Southern California Winery Country, 

Pechanga Resort Casino, and Historic 

Downtown Old Town Temecula. 

A consistent revenue generator, 

tourism has thrived as a healthy component 

of Temecula Valley economic 

development. Most direct, visitor 

spending is generated from local, 

hotel, motel, B&B, and short-term 

vacation rental guests: $448 million of 

the total $724 million in 2017 visitor 

spending. With consistent industry 

growth for eight consecutive years, 

the tourism economy generated a 

milestone $235 million in earnings in 

2017, and generated a record 7,330 

tourism-related self-employed, salaried, 

fulltime, and part-time positions. 

For more information, visit the official 

visitor information website at Visit- 

TemeculaValley.com. Open Monday 

through Saturday, the Temecula Valley 

Visitors Center is located in Old Town 

Temecula (Third Street and Mercedes). 

For visitor assistance, please call 

(888) 363-2852 or (951) 491-6085.




The Importance of Vision in Children’s School Success 

Healthy 

Living 

by 

Tina Dr. Patrick M. Gottlieb, Utnehmer D.C. 

The holiday school breaks are 

over and children are back in school. 

A child needs many abilities to succeed 

in school. Good vision is a key. 

Reading, writing, chalkboard work, 

and using computers are among the 

visual tasks students perform daily. 

A child’s eyes are constantly in use 

in the classroom and at play. When 

his or her vision is not functioning 

properly, education and participation 

in sports can suffer. 

As children progress in school, 

they face increasing demands on 

their visual abilities. The school 

years are a very important time in 

every child’s life. All parents want to 

see their children do well in school 

and most parents do all they can to 

provide them with the best educational 

opportunities. But too often 

one important learning tool may be 

overlooked - a child’s vision. 

As children progress in school, 

they face increasing demands on 

their visual abilities. The size of print 

in schoolbooks becomes smaller and 

the amount of time spent reading 

and studying increases significantly. 

Increased class work and homework 

place significant demands on the 

child’s eyes. Unfortunately, the visual 

abilities of some students aren’t 

performing up to the task. 

When certain visual skills have 

not developed, or are poorly developed, 

learning is difficult and 

stressful, and children will typically: 

• Avoid reading and other near 

visual work as much as possible. 

• Attempt to do the work anyway, 

but with a lowered level of comprehension 

or efficiency. 

• Experience discomfort, fatigue 

and a short attention span. 

Some children with learning 

difficulties exhibit specific behaviors 

of hyperactivity and distractibility. 

These children are often labeled as 

having “Attention Deficit Hyperactivity 

Disorder” (ADHD). However, 

undetected and untreated vision 

problems can elicit some of the very 

same signs and symptoms commonly 

attributed to ADHD. Due to these 

similarities, some children may be 

mislabeled as having ADHD when, 

in fact, they have an undetected vision 

problem. 

Because vision may change frequently 

during the school years, regular 

eye and vision care is important. The 

most common vision problem is nearsightedness 

or myopia. However, some 

children have other forms of refractive 

error like farsightedness and astigmatism. 

In addition, the existence of eye 

focusing, eye tracking and eye coordination 

problems may affect school and 

sports performance. 

There are many visual skills beyond 

seeing clearly that team together 

to support academic success. Vision is 

more than just the ability to see clearly 

or having 20/20 eyesight. It is also the 

ability to understand and respond to 

what is seen. Basic visual skills include 

the ability to focus the eyes, use both 

eyes together as a team, and move them 

effectively. Other visual perceptual 

skills include: 

• recognition (the ability to tell the 

difference between letters like “b” 

and “d”), 

• comprehension (to “picture” in our 

mind what is happening in a story 

we are reading), and 

• retention (to be able to remember 

and recall details of what we read). 

Every child needs to have the following 

vision skills for effective reading and 

learning: 

• Visual acuity — the ability to see 

clearly in the distance for viewing 

the chalkboard, at an intermediate 

distance for the computer, and up 

close for reading a book. 

• Eye Focusing — the ability to 

quickly and accurately maintain 

clear vision as the distance from 

objects change, such as when looking 

from the chalkboard to a paper 

on the desk and back. Eye focusing 

allows the child to easily maintain 

clear vision over time like when 

reading a book or writing a report. 

• Eye tracking — the ability to keep 

the eyes on target when looking 

from one object to another, moving 

the eyes along a printed page, or 

following a moving object like a 

thrown ball. 

• Eye teaming — the ability to coordinate 

and use both eyes together 

when moving the eyes along a 

printed page, and to be able to 

judge distances and see depth for 

class work and sports. 

• Eye-hand coordination — the 

ability to use visual information 

to monitor and direct the hands 

when drawing a picture or trying 

to hit a ball. 

• Visual perception — the ability to 

organize images on a printed page 

into letters, words and ideas and 

to understand and remember what 

is read. 

If any of these visual skills are 

lacking or not functioning properly, 

a child will have to work harder. This 

can lead to headaches, fatigue and 

other eyestrain problems. Parents and 

teachers need to be alert for symptoms 

that may indicate a child has a vision 

problem. 

A child may not tell you that he or 

she has a vision problem because they 

may think the way they see is the way 

everyone sees. Signs that may indicate 

a child has vision problem include: 

• Frequent eye rubbing or blinking 

• Short attention span 

• Avoiding reading and other close 

activities 

• Frequent headaches 

• Covering one eye 

• Tilting the head to one side 

• Holding reading materials close 

to the face 

• An eye turning in or out 

• Seeing double 

• Losing place when reading 

• Difficulty remembering what he 

or she read 

The vision skills needed for successful 

reading and learning are much 

more complex than just 20/20 vision. 

Your child should receive an eye examination 

every year, or more frequently if 

specific problems or risk factors exist, 

or if recommended by your eye doctor. 

Unfortunately, parents and educators 

often incorrectly assume that if a child 

passes a school screening, then there is 

no vision problem. However, many 

school vision screenings only test for 

distance visual acuity. A child who 

can see 20/20 can still have a vision 

problem. In reality, the vision skills 

needed for successful reading and 

learning are much more complex. 

Even if a child passes a vision 

screening, they should receive a 

comprehensive optometric examination 

if: 

• They show any of the signs or 

symptoms of a vision problem 

listed above. 

• They are not achieving up to 

their potential. 

• They are minimally able to 

achieve but have to use excessive 

time and effort to do so. 

Vision changes can occur without 

your child or you noticing them. 

Therefore, your child should receive 

an eye examination every year, or 

more frequently if specific problems 

or risk factors exist, or if recommended 

by your eye doctor. The earlier 

a vision problem is detected and 

treated, the more likely treatment 

will be successful. When needed, 

the doctor can prescribe treatment 

including eyeglasses, contact lenses 

or vision therapy to correct any vision 

problems. 

Come in and see us for a comprehensive 

eye exam and discuss 

personalized options for your eyes. 

Dr. Patrick Utnehmer, Promenade 

Optometry & Lasik, (951) 296-2211. 

“ 

As children progress in school, they 

face increasing demands on their visual 

abilities.




21 

8 Nutrition Trends, 

Explained 

5 Ways to Burn Calories on 

Your Lunch Break 

You want to exercise and get in 

better shape, but you have a full-time 

job and several other responsibilities. 

With a jam-packed schedule and no 

time to exercise, you’ll just have to 

give up, right? 

Wait! While you might find it 

impossible to spend two hours per 

day at the gym, being busy does not 

equal a free pass to an exercise-free 

life! You can still exercise, burn some 

calories, and feel better about yourself 

in as little as 30 minutes per day. 

Try the following exercises on 

your lunch break, and you can burn 

100 calories or more in half an hour. 

Vinyasa yoga. Also called “flow 

yoga”, this is the form of yoga in 

which you move smoothly and quickly 

from one pose (asana) to another. 

A quick search of YouTube on your 

smartphone can bring up quick, 

ten-minute routines (or longer, of 

you prefer). 

A short run. When you picture 

running for exercise, you probably 

think of your neighbor who gets up at 

5 am every morning to run five miles. 

While that’s admirable, not everyone 

is interested in doing that. The good 

news is, you can take a very slow jog 

on your lunch break and burn 100 

calories or more in just ten minutes 

or so. Stash a pair of shoes in your 

office and map out a one-mile route 

near the office. 

Use your body weight. You can 

do body-weight exercises pretty much 

anywhere, even in your office. Put together 

a routine of push-ups, sit-ups, 

squats, and lunges. If you don’t have 

room in your office, head outside to 

a nearby park. You can take along a 

jump rope for a little cardio, too. 

Hike the stairs. You don’t need 

the Stair Master at the gym when the 

real thing is right there in your office 

building! Take a walk through the 

halls and climb as many flights of 

stairs as you feel comfortable. 

Hit the work gym. If your 

company has a gym, or there’s one 

amanteandassociates.com 

nearby, take advantage of it on your 

lunch break. As we said, you don’t 

have to spend hours there in order 

to see results. Spend 15 minutes on 

a stationary bike or elliptical, and 15 

minutes in the weight room focusing 

on one area of your body. Then head 

back to the office, feeling a little more 

powerful and dynamic. 

Steve Amante is the owner of Amante 

& Associates Insurance Solutions, Inc. 

He can be reached at 951-676-8800. 

www.amanteandassociates.com. 

“ While you might 

find it impossible to 

spend two hours 

per day at the gym, 

being busy does not 

equal a free pass 

to an exercise-free 

life. You can still exercise, 

burn some 

calories, and feel 

better about yourself 

in as little as 30 

minutes per day. 

Healthy 

Living 

by presented by 

by presented by 

Tina Steve M. Amante Gottlieb, D.C. 

Tina Steve M. Amante Gottlieb, D.C.




Romance 101: Self-Love 

Healthy 

Living 

by 

Tina Monique M. Gottlieb, deGroot D.C. 

The famous poet, Oscar Wilde, said 

it best: “To love oneself is the beginning 

of a lifelong romance.” I’m sure you’ve 

heard it – love yourself! You’re thinking, 

“Okay, but how? And why?” You have 

others to care for. Do they fall to the 

wayside in the wake of your self-love 

journey? What are the benefits? That is 

the beauty of self-love, and its sidekick, 

self-care. The love you cultivate for 

yourself is not only so important for 

your overall well being, but it is great 

at improving your relationships with 

others. Let’s explore, shall we? 

The difference between self-care 

and selfish. 

Self-care is often confused with 

selfishness. Here’s the difference: Selfcare 

is honoring your needs for your 

overall well-being. Selfishness is lacking 

consideration for others and doing 

something purely for your personal gain. 

You care for yourself so you can better 

care for others. Whose oxygen mask 

goes on first? Yours. Is putting your oxygen 

mask on first selfish? It’s dramatic, 

I know, but you get the picture. When 

you are taken care of, it becomes much 

easier for you to handle everything life 

throws at you. That being said, it isn’t 

all bubble baths and wine. Sometimes 

it’s hard work to put your foot down 

and say no to what does not serve you. 

A loving relationship starts with 

you. 

Who or what validates you? I bet 

you are the last person on that list. Having 

a strong relationship with yourself is 

the key to self-love. It comes from within, 

not an outside source. Why? People 

come and go. We can lose friends, 

lovers, or family in a heartbeat. Relying 

on others for happiness is straining to 

your self-worth. Begin to give yourself 

affirmations. By creating a strong relationship 

and trust with YOU, you allow 

others to respect and love you as you 

love yourself. You won’t settle. You will 

be more open to accepting love. 

Having self-love increases your 

ability to love others, and when you love 

yourself, you will care for yourself in 

the ways that you deserve because you 

worked for it. 

Monique deGroot is the Owner of Murrieta 

Day Spa which is located at 41885 

Ivy St. in Murrieta. 

“ 

When you are taken 

care of, it becomes 

much easier for you 

to handle everything 

life throws at you. 

Temecula Valley Hospital and Southwest Healthcare System to Host Women’s Health 

Expo to Educate the Local Community on Women’s Health Awareness 

Temecula Valley Hospital and Southwest 

Healthcare System, which includes 

Rancho Springs Medical Center and Inland 

Valley Medical Center, is hosting an educational 

community event, a Women’s Health 

Expo, on February 28, 2019, from 10:00 am 

to 1:30 pm at Pechanga Resort and Casino. 

The event will feature education regarding 

heart, stroke and gynecological 

health for women. The event will have 

a gourmet lunch provided. Registration 

is required and can be completed at 

https://www.temeculavalleyhospital.com/ 

events-and-programs/event-calendar/womens-health-expo. 

This expo will provide education 

and resources to assist women in making 

lifestyle changes that can improve their 

health. Free screenings will be available for 

women to learn their numbers in terms of 

measurements that put them at risk. These 

screenings are available to ensure that every 

woman who attends knows her numbers. 

Blood pressure, Lipid Panel (Cholesterol, 

Triglycerides, etc.) and Glucose (Diabetes) 

screenings will be offered to attendees. 

There will be informational booths 

providing education on nutrition and 

healthy eating education, exercise, smoking 

cessation, stroke, heart disease, and 

stress management. American Medical 

Response (AMR) will provide hands-only 

CPR training. Local businesses will be 

attending and offering healthy lifestyle 

options to attendees. 

The lunch portion of the event will 

include physician speakers and patient 

testimonials who will discuss risk factors, 

lifestyle changes, how heart disease and 

stroke symptoms present differently in 

women and when these symptoms require 

medical attention. A physician will also 

speak regarding gynecological and oncology 

health. The speaker panel will conclude 

with an audience Q & A session. 

All women are encouraged to attend 

this informative event to receive education 

on their health, including heart disease, 

stroke, gynecological health, as well as empower 

themselves to make lifestyle changes 

that may help save their life. The cost to 

attend the event is $10 and every registration 

will be entered into a drawing to win a 

package for two at the new Pechanga Spa. 

Seating is limited so please register soon! 

About Temecula Valley Hospital - Temecula 

Valley Hospital brings advanced 

technology, innovative programs, patient-centered 

and family sensitive care to 

area residents. The hospital features 140 

private patient rooms; emergency care featuring 

ER Reserve; advanced cardiac and 

stroke care; orthopedics; and general and 

surgical specialties. TVH is nationally recognized 

for Patient Safety by The Leapfrog 

Group, with a 2017 Top Hospital Award 

and 5 consecutive “A” Grades for Patient 

Safety in Fall 2018, Spring 2018, Fall 2017, 

Spring 2017 and Fall 2016. The hospital 

also recently received the American Heart 

Association/American Stroke Association’s 

Get With The Guidelines®-Stroke Gold 

Plus Quality Achievement Award, The Joint 

Commission’s Gold Seal of Approval® for 

Certification for Hip and Knee Replacement, 

4 Star Medicare Hospital Compare 

Rating, the honor of the Inland Empire’s 

Top Workplaces 2017 and 2018, has been 

designated an Aetna Institute of Quality® 

Cardiac Care Facility for comprehensive 

heart and vascular treatment-including 

Cardiac Medical Intervention, Cardiac 

Rhythm Programs and Cardiac Surgery. 

For more information, visit www.temeculavalleyhospital.com 

About Inland Valley Medical Center 

This campus of Southwest Healthcare System 

located in Wildomar, CA is the only hospital 

in the region to offer Level II Trauma 

Services, a Certified Primary Stroke Center, 

the Total Joint Center now with advanced 

certification from the Joint Commission 

and is a nationally recognized center for 

weight-loss surgery by the Metabolic and 

Bariatric Surgery Accreditation and Quality 

Improvement Program (Also awarded the 

Blue Distinction for outstanding bariatric 

surgical services). www.inlandvalleymedcenter.com 

About Rancho Springs Medical Center 

This hospital campus of Southwest Healthcare 

System located in Murrieta, CA features 

the largest Women’s Center (Awarded 

the Blue Distinction for Outstanding Maternity 

Care) in the region which includes 

Rady Children’s Neonatal Intensive Care 

Unit (Rady San Diego: Ranked one of the 

tops in the nation for neonatal care by US 

News and World Report 2018), a Certified 

Primary Stroke Center, and the da Vinci © 

Robotic Surgical System performing the 

region’s first virtually no-scar single site 

procedures. 

www.ranchospringsmedcenter.com




23 

Inland Valley Medical Center Receives 

Verification as a Level II Trauma Center 

The trauma center at Inland Valley 

Medical Center, a campus of Southwest 

Healthcare System, has been verified as 

a Level II Trauma Center by the Verification 

Review Committee (VRC) of 

the American College of Surgeons. This 

achievement recognizes Inland Valley’s 

dedication to providing optimal care for 

injured patients. 

“The Level II designation allows for 

the most serious injuries to be treated 

right here in our community,” stated 

Lana Bordenkecher, BSN, RN, CCRN, 

Trauma Program Manager. “There’s 

a huge spectrum of trauma services 

available right here at Inland Valley.” 

Inland Valley Medical Center now has 

in-house 24 hours a day/7 days a week 

trauma surgeons, and support staff to 

assist in the treatment of patients. 

The ACS Committee on Trauma’s 

verification program provides confirmation 

that Inland Valley’s trauma center 

has demonstrated its commitment to 

providing the highest level of care and 

service available to Southwest Riverside 

County. The actual establishment and 

the designation of trauma centers is 

the function of local, regional, or state 

health care systems agencies, such as 

the local emergency medical services 

(EMS) authority. 

There are five separate categories of 

verification in the COT’s program. Each 

category has specific criteria that must 

be met by a facility seeking that level 

of verification. Inland Valley Medical 

Center received an on-site review by a 

team of experienced site reviewers, who 

use the current Resources for the Optimal 

Care of the Injured Patient manual 

as a guideline in conducting the survey. 

“This verification was achieved 

by a remarkable team of nurses, physicians 

and staff focused on delivering 

the highest care possible in Southwest 

Riverside County,” stated Brad Neet, 

CEO of Southwest Healthcare System. 

“It displays our commitment to our 

communities by demonstrating a high 

level of expertise.” Maintaining a Level 

II shows Inland Valley’s concerted effort 

and commitment to the surrounding 

communities by making these services 

available to patients 24 hours a day, 

seven days a week. 

- This campus of Southwest 

Healthcare System is the only hospital 

in the region to offer Level II Trauma 

Services, a Certified Primary Stroke 

Center, the region’s only Total Joint 

Center now with advanced certification 

from the Joint Commission and 

is a nationally recognized center for 

weight-loss surgery by the Metabolic 

and Bariatric Surgery Accreditation 

and Quality Improvement Program 

(Also awarded the Blue Distinction for 

outstanding bariatric surgical services). 

www.inlandvalleymedcenter.com 

Rancho Springs Medical Center 

- This hospital campus of Southwest 

Healthcare System features the largest 

Women’s Center (Awarded the Blue 

Distinction for Outstanding Maternity 

Care) in the region which includes Rady 

Children’s Neonatal Intensive Care 

Unit (Rady San Diego: Ranked one of 

the tops in the nation for neonatal care 

by US News and World Report 2018), 

a Certified Primary Stroke Center, and 

the da Vinci © Robotic Surgical System 

performing the region’s first virtually 

no-scar single site procedures. www. 

ranchospringsmedcenter.com 

American College of Surgeons (ACS) - 

The American College of Surgeons is a 

scientific and educational association 

of surgeons that was founded in 1913 

to raise the standards of surgical education 

and practice and to improve the 

care of the surgical patient. The College 

has over 72,000 members and it is the 

largest association of surgeons in the 

world. Longstanding achievements 

have placed the ACS in the forefront 

of American surgery and have made it 

an important advocate for all surgical 

patients. www.facs.org




Keep Your Medicare Costs Down 

Most doctors accept Medicare as 

full payment for their services. But some 

accept it only for certain services, and 

others don’t accept it at all. What does 

this mean for you? 

If you have Original Medicare, it 

means you should try to use doctors, 

hospitals, medical equipment suppliers, 

and other healthcare providers that 

participate or “accept assignment” in 

Medicare. Such providers have signed 

agreements to take Medicare as payment 

in full for their services. 

If your doctor or other provider 

accepts assignment: 

• Your out-of-pocket costs may be 

less. 

• The provider agrees to charge you 

only the Medicare deductible and 

coinsurance amount, and usually 

waits for Medicare to pay its share 

before asking you to pay your share. 

• The provider has to submit your 

claim directly to Medicare and can’t 

charge you for submitting the claim. 

Some doctors and other providers 

haven’t signed an agreement to accept 

assignment for all Medicare-covered 

services, but they can still choose to 

accept assignment for some services. 

These providers are called “non-participating” 

providers. If your doctor or other 

provider doesn’t accept assignment: 

• You may have to pay the entire bill 

at the time of service. Your provider 

is supposed to submit a claim to 

Medicare for any Medicare-covered 

services they provide to you. 

• The provider can’t charge you for 

submitting a claim. If they don’t 

submit the Medicare claim once 

you ask them to, call 1 800 MEDI- 

CARE. 

• In some cases, you might have to 

submit your own claim to Medicare 

using Form CMS-1490S to get paid 

back. 

• The provider can charge you 

more than the Medicare-approved 

amount, but there’s a limit. Non-participating 

providers are paid 95% of 

the Medicare-approved amount. 

They can only charge you up to 15% 

over the amount that non-participating 

providers are paid. 

The 15 percent limit applies only to 

certain Medicare-covered services and 

doesn’t apply to some medical supplies 

and durable medical equipment. 

Some doctors and other providers 

don’t want to enroll in the Medicare 

program at all. You can still visit these 

“opt out” providers, but they must enter 

into a private contract with you (unless 

you’re in need of emergency or urgently 

needed care). 

A private contract is a written agreement 

between you and a doctor or other 

provider who has decided not to provide 

services to anyone through Medicare. 

The private contract only applies to 

services you get from the provider who 

asked you to sign it. 

If you sign a private contract with 

an opt-out doctor or other provider, keep 

in mind that Medicare won’t pay any 

amount for the services you get from 

that provider, even Medicare-covered 

services. 

• You’ll have to pay the full amount 

this provider charges you. You and 

your provider will set up your own 

payment terms through the contract. 

• If you have a Medicare Supplement 

Insurance (Medigap) policy, it 

won’t pay anything for the services 

you get. Call your insurance company 

before you get the service if you 

have questions. 

• Your provider must tell you if Medicare 

would pay for the service if you 

got it from another provider who 

accepts Medicare. 

• Your provider must tell you if he 

or she has been excluded from 

Medicare. 

• You can’t be asked to sign a private 

contract for emergency or urgent 

care. 

• You’re always free to get services 

not covered by Medicare if you 

choose to pay for them yourself. 

You don’t have to sign a private 

contract. You can always go to another 

provider who participates (accepts assignment) 

in Medicare. 

Be sure to ask your physician or 

other provider if they are participating, 

non-participating, or opt-out. You can 

also check by calling 1-800-MEDI- 

CARE or by using Medicare’s Physician 

Compare tool on www.medicare.gov. 

You may want to contact your State 

Health Insurance Assistance Program 

(SHIP) to get free help before signing a 

private contract with any doctor or other 

health care provider. 

Greg Dill is Medicare’s regional administrator 

for Arizona, California, 

Nevada, Hawaii, and the Pacific Territories. 

You can always get answers 

to your Medicare questions by calling 

1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227).


Cloudy and Blurry, or the New Normal? 

REAL ESTATE 

by by 

Gene Steve Wunderlich Fillingim 

As most of you know from my 

recent articles, 2018 was not a great 

year but far from a bad one. We’ve 

been in a low interest rate/low inventory 

situation for so long we’ve forgotten 

what a ‘normal’ market used to 

be. For example, we’ve conveniently 

forgotten when we were comfortable 

with 6% - 7% mortgage interest rates. 

Rates have been artificially depressed 

into the 3% range for so long that 

today’s rates of 4.25% are causing 

alarm. They shouldn’t. And next year 

they’ll likely rise into the 5% - 5.5% 

range, and that won’t be the end of 

the world either. However, it does 

make it more difficult for first-time 

buyers to enter the market given the 

lack of affordable workforce housing. 

Lack of supply is the problem, not 

interest rates. 

Similarly, we’ve forgotten that a 

‘normal’ inventory of homes for sale 

is a 6 -7 month supply. Over the past 

decade we’ve had local inventories 

as low as 3 weeks and only recently 

increased to 3 months. And for some 



reason people are freaking out about it. 

They shouldn’t. Increased supply is the 

solution, not the problem. 

Properties are staying on the market 

longer – as long as 40 days in December. 

For agents accustomed to the more recent 

market, the fact that they’re not getting 

multiple offers at higher than asking 

price within hours of listing a home is 

evidence that the market is collapsing. 

It’s not. Competitively priced properties 

are still selling briskly but nearly 30% 

of properties in the mls are now selling 

after a price reduction. Adjust your expectations 

in line with reality instead of 

fantasy and you won’t be disappointed. 

Fewer properties sold across our 

region in 2018 than 2017 – about 12% 

fewer (11,685 / 10,479). That’s actually 

479 homes more than my mid-year forecast 

called for, so I look at that as a win! 

But it’s also the fact that we’re coming 

off our best sales year in a decade in 

2017 that makes this year look worse 

than it actually is. After four consecutive 

years of increasing sales volume, a 

step back looks scary until you realize 

a correction is not a bad thing. As long 

as it remains just a correction. By the 

way, condo sales were off 15% (680 

/ 581) and sales of luxury homes over 

$1,000,000 also declined 16% (131 / 

110) across the region. 

If you’re an existing homeowner, 

median price appreciation remained 

a bright spot in 2018, though not as 

bright as it has been. Median price for 

the region increased 6% ($351,578 / 

$374,104), exceeding my mid-year forecast 

of 5%. Echoing what’s happening 

across the state, our higher end markets 

in Temecula and Murrieta saw three 

consecutive months of price declines 

during the last quarter while more affordable 

market continued to increase. 

Temecula actually saw a median price 

decline of 5% from December of 2017 

($474,000 / $449,325) and after posting 

an average price in excess of $500,000 

for the first 11 months of the year, saw 

that drop to $489,890 in December. 

Across the market our region is still 

some 4.5% below our prior peak average 

price point ($405,486 / $387,767) 

but three cities, Temecula, Wildomar 

and Menifee all set new record high 

averages. It took 11 years to recover 

what it took 18 months to lose. 

So where do we go in 2019? Well 

there are experts on both sides of the 

equation from (limited) boom to (moderate) 

bust. As usual, I agree with the 

experts. Home sales across the state fell 

3.2% in 2018 and are forecast to drop 

25 

another 3.3% in 2019. Sluggish sales 

will moderate price gains to 3% - 5% 

with actual declines in some markets. 

Most point to underlying strength in 

our economy albeit with concern for 

the impact of weakness in markets 

from Europe to China, the fear of 

trade wars, stock market volatility, 

the Fed, and what the newly constituted 

Congress and mega-majority 

California Legislature will deliver 

to us. 

Meanwhile cloudy and blurry 

will define our return to the new normal 

for the next few months. If you’d 

like to view the detailed report and 

graphs, please visit: https://tinyurl. 

com/SRCAR-housing. 

Gene Wunderlich is Vice President, 

Government Affairs for Southwest 

Riverside County Association of Realtors. 

If you have questions on the 

market, please contact me at GAD@ 

srcar.org.




‘10 Best Wine Travel Destination’ 

Not All Email is Created Equal 

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 

Wine Enthusiast announces the best 

wine related travel hotspots that offer 

something for everyone with a passion 

to explore beyond the glass. Among their 

top 10 is a boutique, emerging hidden 

gem, Temecula Valley Southern California 

Wine Country. The destination is 

the only California city that was selected, 

and California was one of only two North 

American states among the list. “It’s an 

honor to be selected among some of the 

best regions in the world. Though we’re 

a lesser-known destination, people are 

discovering our town and they are in awe 

over the experience. Whether its wine, 

food or customer service, we don’t settle 

for anything but the best,” says Kimberly 

Adams, Visit Temecula Valley CEO and 

President. 

“Our annual 10 Best Wine Getaways 

list is culled from the extensive 

travel our tasting and editorial team 

undertakes each year…along with input 

from trusted wine and travel journalist 

around the globe,” says Executive Editor 

Susan Kostrzewa. “We seek locales that 

offer world-class wine and wine-related 

experiences as well as unforgettable 

restaurants, hotels and cultural activities 

suited for the intrepid wine lover. The 

list balances classic, famed regions with 

emerging, insider gems that have yet to 

be discovered.” 

Winery experiences include wine 

blending, behind the scenes tours, wine 

pairings, live music, Shakespeare in the 

Vines, wine workshops, yoga and wine, 

fitness and wine, painting and wine, 

cooking classes, wine country spa, inns 

and resorts, and dining. 

There are 19 wine country restaurants 

to choose from, all in picturesque 

settings and surrounded by vineyards. 

Only minutes from wine country are 

two destination attractions: Old Town 

Temecula and Pechanga Resort Casino. 

Charming Old Town Temecula is home 

to more than 100 specialty shops, breweries, 

wine tasting rooms and restaurants. 

With authentic atmosphere, museums, 

theater of the arts, and repurposed historical 

buildings, Old Town is a vibrant 

downtown. 

Pechanga Resort Casino offers 

guests 13 restaurants to choose from, a 

luxury 25,000 square-foot spa, 4.5-acre 

pool complex, 4,000 slots, 154 table 

games, championship golf course, and a 

4,000-plus seat live entertainment venue 

for A-list entertainment. A three to fivenight 

stay is recommended to experience 

everything the destination has to offer. 

Hotel, resort, bed and breakfast, and 

vacation rental choices are only minutes 

away from everything there is to do. 

Staying among the vineyards is an option 

at Carter Estate, South Coast Winery 

Resort & Spa, and Inn at Europa Village. 

Visitors can wake up steps away from the 

vineyards with hot air balloons overhead. 

There are also some great transportation 

companies that will pick up guests from 

where they are staying and take them on 

a half day wine tasting or brewery tour. 

Find out more about this top destination 

and start planning a wine getaway 

at VisitTemeculaValley.com or call (888) 

363-2852. 

About the Temecula Valley and 

Visit Temecula Valley - Laid back, 

picturesque Temecula Valley Southern 

California Wine Country welcomes nearly 

three million visitors each year. It is a 

year-round vacation destination, located 

60 minutes from San Diego, Orange 

County, and Palm Springs; 90 minutes 

from Los Angeles. 

Temecula Valley Wine Country is 

widely recognized for its scenic vineyards, 

award-winning wines, and experiential 

wineries. The popular boutique 

destination includes the Temecula Valley 

A.V.A. (American Viticulture Area) as 

well as historic Old Town Temecula and 

Pechanga Resort Casino. It also was 

named as a 2019 Wine Enthusiast Top 

10 Wine Getaways. 

Visit Temecula Valley is the region’s 

official tourism marketing organization 

and resource for visitors. The Visitors 

Center is located in Old Town Temecula. 

For visitor information and assistance, 

please call (888) 363-2852 or go to 

VisitTemeculaValley.com. 

VisitTemeculaValley.com 

TECHNOLOGY 

by 

by 

Tristan 

Steve Fillingim 

Collopy 

If you’re like most professionals, 

you spend an inordinate of time composing, 

sending, and reading emails. 

In a business environment, that often 

means that you respond to email from 

your computer, and your phone, and 

your tablet—maybe even your watch. 

The beauty and curse of today’s 

bring-your-own-device environment 

is that you are constantly connected 

to your coworkers and clients. Having 

a single mail account spread across 

multiple devices poses a unique set of 

challenges. Perhaps you responded to 

a message on your phone yesterday, 

but it still shows as unread in your 

inbox on your laptop. Maybe your coworker 

sent you a calendar invite that 

you accepted on your computer, but 

it’s not showing at all when you double-check 

the meeting time. So much 

of modern business runs on email that 

even small problems quickly escalate 

to the height of frustration. There is 

good news however—it doesn’t have 

to be this way. 

To understand the source of the 

conflagration, allow me to wax technical 

for a paragraph. There are three 

main means of sending and receiving 

email: POP3, IMAP, and Exchange. 

POP, or Post Office Protocol, is the 

earliest of these mail sending protocols, 

and was developed to accommodate 

a very different internet than 

the one we all use today. POP was 

designed to accommodate computers 

that were not constantly connected to 

the internet, rather they connected, 

downloaded or uploaded required 

data, and disconnected. POP has been 

through iterations since, and POP3 is 

the current standard. Although POP3 

is fast, it manually downloads all copies 

of messages to whatever client you 

are using—Outlook, your phone, etc. 

POP3 mailboxes also store sent messages 

on the device they are sent from, 

meaning that they cannot be retrieved 

from another device at a later time. 

POP3 mailboxes are the main cause of 

mismatches between read and unread 

messages and unsynced calendar items 

across multiple devices. IMAP, or 

Internet Messaging Access Protocol, 

mitigates most of the limitations of 

POP3. Rather than storing mail on 

the client, all messages in an IMAP 

mailbox are stored on the server. 

Clients that have an IMAP mailbox 

configured are capable of syncing with 

one another, this means that if you read 

a message on a phone, that change is 

reflected in Outlook on your laptop, 

because the actual “reading” of the 

message is occurring on the mail server. 

The primary limitation of an IMAP 

mailbox is that they offer a limited 

amount of storage. Microsoft began 

developing Exchange around the same 

time as IMAP and POP3, but it was 

geared mainly towards the enterprise. 

Today, Exchange has largely become 

the standard in large organizations. 

Exchange offers all of the syncing 

capabilities of IMAP. This means 

that a calendar item you added on 

your phone will sync automatically 

to Outlook on your laptop, the mail 

client on your tablet, and indeed your 

aforementioned smart watch. Any 

place that you have an Exchange 

mailbox added will sync automatically 

as long as it has an available internet 

connection. Since it was designed for 

the enterprise, Exchange has far more 

configurable permissions, the ability to 

create resource mailboxes, shared calendars, 

and distribution lists. Up until 

recently, all of this capability came at 

a steep price. In order to have access 

to an Exchange mailbox, you needed 

to have a dedicated Exchange server, 

licensing for which was considerably 

expensive compared to IMAP and 

POP3 mailboxes, which are often free. 

This is to say nothing of the hardware 

required to run the Exchange environment. 

Microsoft sought to change 

all this with the advent of Office 365, 

effectively opening Exchange capabilities 

to the SMB marketplace. All of 

the server infrastructure is hosted by 

Microsoft, and pricey yearly licenses 

have been replaced with monthly subscription 

fees. 

All of this is not to say that Exchange 

is a panacea. It is, however, 

effectively the standard mail protocol 

for the Enterprise because of its capabilities, 

its tie-in to Outlook, and 

capability to be centrally managed. 

Exchange eliminates the frustration 

of mail unsynced between multiple 

devices, massively increases mailbox 

storage space, and allows the 

Exchange administrator levels of 

granular control and configurability 

not offered by either POP3 or IMAP 

mail providers. Your business runs 

on email—if your email is a constant 

source of frustration, or you have to 

work with it rather than having it work 

for you, consider upgrading to a mail 

protocol designed for your business. 

Mythos Technology is an IT consulting 

and management firm that provides 

Managed Technology Services 

including hosted cloud solutions. 

For more information, please visit 

www.mythostech.com or call (951) 

813-2672. 

mythostech.com


Supervisor Kevin Jeffries Elected Chairman 


At the first meeting of the Riverside 

County Board of Supervisors in 2019, 

three members of the Board were sworn 

in (including two new ones), and the 

elections for Chair and Vice-Chair of 

the Board, as well as the Chair of four 

Special Districts the Board serves as 

directors for were held. 

First District Supervisor Kevin 

Jeffries was elected as Chair with the 

unanimous support of his colleagues. 

Fourth District Supervisor Victor Manuel 

“Manny” Perez was elected Vice- 

Chair of the Board of Supervisors, and 

also as Chair of the Housing Authority. 

Earlier in the meeting, Perez was sworn 

in for his first full term as an elected Supervisor, 

having previously served as an 

appointee of Governor Jerry Brown, after 

the death of Supervisor John Benoit. 

Second District Supervisor Karen 

Spiegel and Fifth District Supervisor 

Jeff Hewitt were also sworn in after 

winning their elections in November for 

the vacant seats formerly represented 

by John Tavaglione and Marion Ashley, 

respectively. Supervisor Spiegel 

was elected to serve as Chair of the 

Flood Control and Water Conservation 

District, and Supervisor Hewitt was 

elected as Chair of the Waste Resources 

Management District. 

Supervisor Chuck Washington, who 

had most recently served as Chair of the 

Board of Supervisors, was elected as 

Chair of the Regional Park and Open- 

Space District. 

Having been elected in 2012, Supervisor 

Jeffries is not only the new Chairman, 

but as a result of the retirements 

of Supervisors Tavaglione and Ashley, 

he is also the most senior member of 

the Board. 

Capitol Notes 


As the new Vice Chair of the Senate 

Health Committee, I look forward 

to working with our new Governor to 

create a healthcare system in California 

that focuses not just on people having 

insurance, but also one that provides for 

genuine access to quality care for the people 

who depend on government services. 

Millions of people depend on Medi-Cal 

for services, but the problem is that we 

have too few doctors able to take these 

patients because the reimbursement rates 

are simply too low. 

With a projected budget surplus of 

$15 Billion, we have a tremendous opportunity 

to create a workable healthcare 

system that lets people receive the services 

they need without increasing costs 

to consumers. We can use the budget 

surplus to increase Medi-Cal reimbursement 

rates paid to doctors and healthcare 

providers so these professionals can 

afford to operate in our communities. 

Over 10 years ago, the Medi-Cal 

reimbursement rate paid to healthcare 

professionals was cut – and that has 

resulted in many providers either going 

out of business or simply being unable to 



“Chair of the Board is primarily a 

ceremonial position, whose primary role 

is simply to run the Board meetings, 

but I appreciate the support of my colleagues 

for this position,” said Jeffries. 

“I am looking forward to making the 

meetings run a bit leaner and more efficiently 

than has been the long-standing 

practice of the Board. We have many 

important issues to address in this 

coming year, and I believe the public 

wants to see us get to the business of the 

meeting as directly and professionally 

as possible, so we don’t waste their 

valuable time, or the time of the various 

county executives and staff waiting for 

their items to be heard.” 

“I look forward to searching for 

solutions to the many challenges facing 

our county with my new colleagues 

and the entire Board of Supervisors,” 

he continued. “This Board has a diversity 

of experiences and expertise that I 

hope will help us tackle issues with our 

budget, ballooning pension obligations, 

traffic congestion, public safety, and 

how we deal with the growth of our 

county. Finding a way to address our 

continuing rapid growth in a sustainable 

way so that current and future residents 

both can enjoy our unique quality of 

life is the critical problem we have to 

resolve.” 

Supervisor Jeffries represents approximately 

450,000 residents from 

the cities of Wildomar, Lake Elsinore, 

Canyon Lake and most of the City of 

Riverside. The district also covers the 

unincorporated communities of DeLuz, 

Gavilan Hills, Good Hope, Lake Hills, 

Lake Mathews, LaCresta, Mead Valley, 

Meadowbrook, Spring Hills, Temescal 

Valley, Tenaja, Warm Springs, and 

Woodcrest. 

stay alive to keep providing the services 

that help our communities stay healthy. 

As Vice Chair of the Senate Health Committee, 

I look forward to working with 

my colleagues and the medical industry 

to find a way to increase reimbursement 

rates to let doctors and medical professionals 

do what they do best – keep their 

patients healthy. 

Here in Riverside County, we have 

several challenges that need the attention 

of the Legislature – we need more doctors 

in our community; we need more access 

to affordable and quality healthcare; and 

we need a system that lets medical professionals 

properly treat patients in our 

local neighborhoods. 

As the Legislature gets to work over 

the coming months, I will be focused on 

working to create a healthcare system 

that is affordable for families, accessible 

to patients, and functional for the doctors, 

nurses, and medical professionals who 

work every day to provide the essential 

services to keep Californians safe and 

healthy. 

27 

Soft Opening for Oak Grove Center’s 

Culinary Creations Storefront in Old Town 

Oak Grove Center CEO Tammy 

Wilson announced recently that their 

Culinary Program: Oak Grove Culinary 

Creations, has opened a storefront in 

Old Town Temecula. 

“We are so proud that because of 

the generosity of Bernie Truax, CEO 

of Truax Development, who owns 

the building in which we now have 

a storefront, we are up and operating 

out of ground floor space in the Truax 

Building in Old Town through the 

foreseeable future,” said Wilson. “We 

can’t thank him enough for his kindness 

and demonstration of confidence in our 

ability to succeed here.” Wilson stressed 

that Truax has donated the space to Oak 

Grove Center’s Culinary Creations to 

give the special program a quick start 

to commercial success. 

“This remarkable program at Oak 

Grove Center is teaching students not 

only how to prepare a wide variety of 

cookies, cakes, pies, and pastries as well 

as specialty coffees, it also teaches them 

teamwork, the need for a strong work 

ethic, and skills they can use recreationally 

or commercially for years to come,” 

said Wilson, noting that the program has 

existed for years at their main campus 

in Murrieta, but this new storefront is an 

amazing opportunity for expansion. All 

proceeds from the retail sales of the pastries, 

catering and other items to visiting 

patrons get returned into the program to 

sustain it and enable it to grow. 

“This incredible opportunity is 

allowing Oak Grove Center to better 

showcase the talents of the students 

and the quality of products and service 

provided. The renowned center’s culinary 

program works in tandem with 

“Coffee for Compassion”, owned and 

operated by Rosie Taranto who is also 

the Fund Development Coordinator of 

Oak Grove and is teaching youth how 

to make hand-crafted lattes and other 

hot drinks. Robin Mc Coy with Robins 

Nests Desserts and Catering is teaching 

the skills of baking and hospitality. In 

addition to their storefront location they 

are also able to cater to local businesses 

and organizations for special events 

such as parties, weddings, birthdays, 

corporate meetings, and other special 

occasions. 

Children that have difficulty with 

expression have found that this program, 

as well as the other art-related alternative 

programs available at Oak Grove 

offer them a non-traditional means of 

initiating healing in a safe and supportive 

environment. 

“Our new storefront location is 

open not only to our current students 

to work there, but also for graduates of 

Oak Grove and other young adults who 

have gone through the foster system and 

are looking for this type of training and 

skill sets,” said Wilson, who naturally 

hopes that the word spreads far and wide 

about this sweet new culinary operation, 

so they can become a self-sustaining 

tenant in the Truax building. 

Oak Grove Center is a remarkable 

nonprofit residential, educational and 

treatment center with multiple campuses 

for children throughout California who 

have psychological, emotional and 

behavioral problems and special needs. 

Oak Grove Center’s stated mission is 

to rebuild the lives of at-risk children 

and their families through education, 

healing, restoring relationships, building 

character and instilling hope. And 

it’s very important to note that they are 

helping to rebuild the lives not only of 

the children themselves, but also their 

families, since everyone is affected in 

one way or another. 

“Culinary Creations is simply another 

way that Oak Grove center empowers 

success and transforms lives,’ 

added Wilson, who also noted that a 

Grand Opening celebration will be announced 

very soon. 

For anyone interested in learning more 

about this special program, you are 

invited to visit cullinarycreations@ 

oakgrove.org or call 951-677-5599 extension 

2271. Tammy also encourages 

you to visit them for delicious cookies, 

desserts, coffee, breads and other specialty 

items in Old Town Temecula at 

41923 Second Street around the corner 

from City Hall.




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29 

Taste & Enjoy 


For almost a decade, ‘‘Taste of 

the World’’ has showcased Temecula’s 

own amazing restaurants and 

chefs. Presented by the Rotary Club 

of Temecula, ‘‘‘Taste of the World’’’ 

is an evening of great food, worldclass 

entertainment and live auction 

excitement! 

Join us this year on Friday, March 

22, at Pechanga’s Grand Resort Ballroom. 

Doors open at 5:30 at this 

four-diamond destination, truly one 

of the jewels of the Temecula Valley. 

Pechanga is the Presenting Sponsor 

for the evening, and with the new 

luxury features of the Grand Resort, 

makes the perfect home for this notto-be 

missed event. 

The Rotary Club of Temecula, 

with over 100 members strong, has 

grown to be one of the most effective 

service providers, both to the local 

community and across the globe. 

Chartered in 1975, the Club is made 

up of business people, community 

leaders and people looking to make 

Temecula and the world a better place. 

Becoming a Rotarian connects you 

with this diverse group of wonderful 

people serving others over self. The 

‘Taste of the World’ event serves as 

our annual fundraiser, allowing the 

club to provide over $100,000 in local 

literacy, military, homeless, senior, 

youth and disadvantaged avenues of 

service and support. 

The stars of ‘Taste of the World’ are 

our own Temecula eateries, wineries 

and brew houses. Their generous support 

is the key to this event. Featured 

this year are: 

• 8 Bit Brewing Company 

• The Bank 

• Espresso Chaffeur 

• Europa Village Winery 

• Fazeli Cellars 

• Il Tramonto Ristorante 

• Nothing Bundt Cakes 

• New Life Culinary Creations 

• Rustico Ristorante 

• Shamrock Irish Pub 

• Smokey Mountain Catering 

• Wilson Creek Winery 

• Burgers & Beer 

• Bamboo 

• Pie Nation, Paisano’s 

• Umi Sushi & Oyster Bar 

• Oak Grove Center Culinary 

Creations 

There are only a few spaces left, so 

If you are interested in showcasing your 

culinary, winemaking, craft brewing or 

spirit distilling talent, please contact 

Karen Schneider at wagonmastercatering@yahoo.com. 

In addition to the great food and 

spirits, ‘Taste of the World’ is pleased 

to announce the featured entertainment, 

California’s own, Kanan Road Band 

who consistently deliver unforgettable, 

high-energy live performances that are 

filled with heartfelt precision. Kanan 

Road has shared the stage with Trace 

Adkins, Lonestar, The Marshall Tucker 

Band, The Dan Band, Easton Corbin, 

Josh Gracin, and Blue Oyster Cult 

at venues from The House of Blues and 

the The Bluebird Cafe in Nashville to 

the Canyon Club in Agoura, along with 

wineries, fairs and private events. Taste 

of the World is pleased to have this local 

favorite entertain our guests. 

‘Taste of the World’ would not be 

possible without our sponsors. Thank 

you to: 

Presenting Sponsor - Pechanga Casino 

and Resort 

Featured Corporate Sponsors - AJH 

Creative and Design & Banner Bank 

World Sponsors - Farmers Insurance - 

Craig Davis Family Agency, Strachota 

Insurance, Merrill Lynch, John Traver, 

Dubots Capital Management, Mike and 

Jami Fencel, Grapeline Wine Tours, 

Langdon Floorcovering 

Continent Sponsors - Prudhomme Associates 

CPA, Temecula Valley Custom 

Pools, Allen & Patsy Orr, Dan Venne, 

Jon Lieberg 

Country Sponsors - Esther N. Phahla, 

CPA, A Professional Corporation, Mt. 

San Jacinto College, Equity Management 

and Realty Service, Lorilee 

Productions, Bowser Realty Group – 

Century 21 Award, Oak Grove Center, 

Riptide Systems, State Farm Insurance 

– Julie Ngo, Edward Jones – Nathan 

Welsh, Stifel, Yamashita Karate-Murrieta, 

Insurance All Stars Agency, 

Matthew Kostrinsky, Bill LaForge 

Advertising Sponsor – The Valley 

Business Journal 

There is a sponsorship for every 

budget. Sponsors receive a variety 

of benefits and are included in many 

areas of the Taste of the World experience. 

For information on how you can 

sponsor or donate, please visit www. 

rotarytasteoftheworld.com or contact 

Leif Jacobsen at socaljacobsen@ 

gmail.com. -- 

This event sells out every year so 

purchase your tickets, today, at www. 

rotarytasteoftheworld.com. The Rotary 

Club of Temecula meets every 

Wednesday, at noon, at 8Bit Brewery. 

Please visit and join us for lunch.




Your Local Chambers 

Temecula Valley Chamber of Commerce 

www.temecula.org 

Murrieta/Wildomar Chamber of Commerce 

www.MWCoC.org 

Menifee Valley Chamber of Commerce 

www.menifeevalleychamber.com 

Lake Elsinore Valley Chamber 

www.lakeelsinorechamber.com 

Hemet/San Jacinto Valley 

Chamber of Commerce 

www.hsjvc.com 

See how the chambers can 

help your business. 

Temecula Sunrise Rotary to Hold 

Music Competition 

Last year’s winners at Temecula Sunrise Rotary: L to R: Emiko Saito, first place 

on piano; Angela Morton, second place, piano; Brianna Chang, third place, 

violin; and Valerie Haines, fourth place, piano. 

High school musicians in the Temecula 

Valley can win cash prizes at 

the annual Rotary Music Competition. 

The Temecula Sunrise Rotary Club will 

hold its 20th annual Music Competition 

on Tuesday, February 12, 6:30 pm at 

Grace Presbyterian Church, 31143 

Nicolas Road, Temecula. Serious 

musicians from local high schools or 

home-schooled students are invited to 

apply. This is an opportunity for young 

musicians to win cash prizes, to perform 

for an appreciative audience, to enhance 

their future careers, and to have the opportunity 

to go on to the finals for more 

cash prizes. 

For information about registration 

for the competition, please call 

951-698-6116. The public and family 

members of the musicians are invited to 

the Temecula Sunrise competition, and 

admission is free. 

With the high quality of the talent 

in the Temecula area, this is always a 

wonderful concert for everyone. 

There are three categories of musical 

presentations: vocal (classical or 

Broadway), piano, and other instrumental. 

First place prize is $400, second 

$250, and third $100, all regardless of 

category. The club winners will go on 

to the Rotary District 5330 finals at the 

University of Redlands, and winners 

of those contests in each category will 

be awarded $1,000 for first place, $500 

second place, and $250 third place. 

Many of the more than 60 Rotary 

clubs in District 5330, encompassing all 

of Riverside County and much of San 

Bernardino County, are also participating 

in this year’s competition. Other 

local Rotary clubs are holding competitions. 

These include Murrieta, Temecula 

(noon), Lake Elsinore, Wildomar 

and Hemet. Advance registration is 

required for all competitions. For dates 

and contacts, please call 951-698-6116. 

Temecula Sunrise Rotary Club 

meets every Tuesday, 7:30 am at Journey’s 

End at Pechanga, the golf course 

restaurant, Temecula. The club’s main 

community project each year is the 

annual Safety Town for children 5-8 

years of age, to be held in June. The 

2019 Safety Town will be the club’s 

17th annual event. The club’s primary 

fund-raising event is the 10K Run 

through the Vineyard, to be held at 

Maurice Carrie Vineyard and Winery 

on Saturday, April 27. The run will be 

the 32nd annual event that Temecula 

Sunrise has sponsored. Registrations 

are now open. For more information 

about the club, Safety Town, and the 

10K, log on to the club website, www. 

temeculasunriserotary.com 

Rotary International is a worldwide 

humanitarian service organization with 

more than 1.2 million members in more 

than 200 countries and geographical 

areas. Founded in 1905 in Chicago, 

Rotary members are business and 

professional leaders united worldwide 

to provide humanitarian service, encourage 

high ethical standards in all 

vocations and help build good will and 

peace in the world. For information 

about membership in Rotary, call the 

above number. 

temeculasunriserotary.com 

With the high quality 

of the talent in the 

Temecula area, this 

is always a wonderful 

concert for everyone.




31 

Vintage Wilson Creek 

is Maturing Well, Connecting 

People and Enhancing Lives 

through Wine 

ilson Creek Winery is coming of age and like all good wine endeavors, it’s getting better with 

time. On the cusp of nearly two decades in business, Wilson Creek continues to break new 

Wground in defining what has become known as Temecula Wine Country. 

Wilson Creek Winery is coming 

of age and like all good wine endeavors, 

it’s getting better with time. On 

the cusp of nearly two decades in 

business, Wilson Creek continues to 

break new ground in defining what 

has become known as Temecula Wine 

Country. 

From its humble beginnings in 

2000 with one tasting room, one tent 

and one wine that seemed to take 

everyone by surprise, Wilson Creek 

is now a hub of wine country activity 

with no less than 12 tasting-room 

bars, five corporate meeting rooms, 

five wedding venues, an event center, 

restaurant, private wine club venue, 

a 12-suite exclusive-accommodation 

estate and more. 

“We’ve come a long way since 

our opening in 2000,” says Bill Wilson, 

founder and co-owner of Wilson 

Creek Winery. “And, while much has 

changed here at the winery and in the 

valley, our focus, our mission is exactly 

the same as when we first started 

and that is to connect people and 

enhance their lives through wine.” 

Part of the Wilson Creek legacy 

started on New Years Eve of 2000. 

It was an unofficial opening of sorts 

and a “Y2K” party to celebrate a new 

century. The Wilson family invited 

friends and family to the party and even 

blended a special wine for the occasion. 

The party was a success. Y2K didn’t 

blow up any computers, and the blended 

wine they made for the event became an 

instant best seller. 

“Our Almond Sparkling Wine was 

almost an accident,” recalls Wilson. 

“My wife wanted to make a special wine 

for the party and at first things didn’t 

go so well. After several versions were 

created and abandoned for one reason or 

another, she came up with an “Almond 

Champagne.” 

Wilson Creek now sells more than 

125,000 cases of wine a year and their 

Almond Sparkling Wine continues to 

serve as an “introductory wine” that 

opens the door to their more complex 

offerings. “There are a lot of people 

who say our Almond Sparkling Wine 

put us on the map, and it did in a way,” 

says Wilson. “It certainly helped us 

grow, but the from the time we started 

we were more focused on our varietals 

and traditional offerings.” 

That focus has paid off with Wilson 

Creek Wines winning prestigious 

awards—numerous gold medals at the 

California State Fair—every year since 

2002. In a 2015 blind tasting, Wilson 

Creek’s Petite Sarah won “Best Red 

in the Valley,” at the annual Temecula 

Valley Winegrowers’ Association 

Awards. Wilson Creek is one of only 

a few wineries in Southern California 

to receive a 90+ ratings for its wines 

from Wine Enthusiast Magazine (2018). 

Wilson Creek wines are served around 

the world and are the “unofficial” wines 

for numerous U.S. Navy ships including 

eight aircraft carriers. 

“Having our wines receive a 90+ 

ratings by Wine Enthusiast is truly 

special,” says Wilson. “It solidifies our 

reputation as a winery capable of producing 

world-class wines; and it puts 

on in a category with a select number 

of wineries in the State of California.” 

Wilson Creek Winery has also 

been active in the community since its 

inception. The winery has won Temecula 

Valley’s “Business of the Year” 

four times. The winery is involved with 

numerous charitable events each year 

raising thousands of dollars for charities 

throughout the valley. Bill Wilson serves 

as a board member for the 20/20 Vision 

Committee, Temecula Valley Visitors 

Bureau, Temecula Valley Winegrowers 

Association and the Temecula Valley 

Water Board. 

In 2018, Wilson Creek Winery added 

The Upper Room, a private dining 

and meeting area for wine club members, 

a new wedding site, “Cabernet 

Hill,” a private “In Vine Dining” area, 

several additional wine bars, and a 

totally revamped main tasting room. 

“We’re almost done,” says Bill 

Wilson with a smile and his fingers 

crossed. “We’ve nearly tripled our 

wine tasting capacity this past year, 

we’ve increased our wine production 

and added several new wines. We 

have a great new wedding venue at 

Cabernet Hill. The Manor is flourishing 

with corporate and wedding 

activities. Everything is moving forward 

at an incredible pace.” 

One thing that won’t change at 

Wilson Creek it the commitment to 

family. Almost the entire Wilson family 

has been involved with the winery 

since the beginning. On any given 

day, you will find Matriarch Rosie 

Wilson with her dog perusing the 

grounds, or any number of Wilsons at 

work behind the scenes. “We started 

the business as a family project, and 

everyone pitched in from day one,” 

says Wilson. “Through the years it 

has become a tradition to treat our 

guests as our extended family and 

make family a big part of the Wilson 

Creek experience.” 

Like the fine wines it serves, 

Wilson Creek Winery keeps getting 

better with age. 

“And, while much has changed here at 

the winery and in the valley, our focus, our 

mission is exactly the same as when we 

first started and that is to connect people 

and enhance their lives through wine.”

VBJ February 19

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